Restrictive Covenants

HHarry

Having been through  similar issue with our recent house purchase I can say that ultimately it’s a gamble.

Our covenants were also 40 years old, and I was sure that as the original landowner was long dead (and the covenants seemed to be written for their sole benefit) we were in the clear.  But our Solicitor advised that as the Neighbours had the same restrictions they could also enforce.

So the gamble is how likely is that?  Are they aware of the covenants, or that they can enforce?  Have they got the means to obtain a high court injunction, which isn’t cheap?  Are you creating such a nuisance that they’ll go throught that hassle?

You can get indemnity insurance - but it still doesn’t guarantee you can do as you wish.  In the worst case they’ll just pay you compensation to reflect the loss of value of the property.

user1977

HHarry said:

You can get indemnity insurance - but it still doesn’t guarantee you can do as you wish.  In the worst case they’ll just pay you compensation to reflect the loss of value of the property.

More to the point, indemnity insurance only covers past breaches, not things you're planning to start doing.

HHarry

user1977 said:

HHarry said:

You can get indemnity insurance - but it still doesn’t guarantee you can do as you wish.  In the worst case they’ll just pay you compensation to reflect the loss of value of the property.

More to the point, indemnity insurance only covers past breaches, not things you're planning to start doing.

That’s not true.  You can get idemnity insurance for a restrictive covenant that prevents extensions, for a future project.