Buying garden

greatcrested

The council are right.

Plus the fact that the council have now been approached with a view to purchase would also rule out adverse possession.

diggingdude

Council's are broke so they won't be giving things away anymore unless it costs them to maintain.  Have they been cutting the grass? 

abi333

I didn't approach them about buying it, I approached them about fence height, thinking the land was mine. No, they have never cut the grass. Now wondering what would happen if someone tripped on the pathway to the door, who would be liable? Should they replace the slabs?

Jeepers_Creepers

Come on, Abi - it's gotta be worth a broken toe, eh? :-)

abi333

I've had a few bruised toes, and a few near misses after a night out, but seriously I wouldn't be liable if the postman or someone fell over it surely? This has opened up a whole new can of worms. Wish I'd just put a damn fence up and not asked, it has seriously annoyed me that nothing was said when I bought the property. Ok maybe I should've checked but never for one moment thought it wouldn't  come with the house and I was in the middle of a very messy divorce 🤪

abi333

So the council have finally got back to me. If I want to erect a fence/hedge, replace dandelion lawn with gravel or astroturf or do anything else to the garden I need to pay £195 permission. If I wish to purchase the land it will cost me £2600! Is that a bit steep for a bit of land around 36m2, that is absolutely no good to the council?
I did ask the question that if the land is theirs  that they would replace the lawn, as there is barely any grass, just a dandelion field, they didn't reply to that ☺️

Davesnave

Much of the cost in buying this land is to cover legal work. Transferring ownership of a small area  costs much the same as for a larger one and council legal departments have a monopoly in situations like this.

jimbog

Seems a good price to me, some gardens are that size. It might have no value to the council but it clearly has value to you.  Any future purchaser's solicitor would likely be more astute than yours was and it will hold up any future sale 

greatcrested

abi333 said:

S....... If I wish to purchase the land it will cost me £2600! Is that a bit steep for a bit of land around 36m2, that is absolutely no good to the council?

Much of the cost in buying this land is to cover legal work.

Need to check what the 2600 is for. It could be just the price of the land and the council could then easily charge their legal costs on top.......

Mickey666

The OP has not owned the front garden for 20 years but has, presumably, had full use  of the garden for all that time.
So what is going to change if the OP does not purchase the land?  Could the council realistically sell it to anyone else?  And even if they did, so what?