Freeholder demanding removal of sheds

bobster2

scorpiontongue said:

Tucosalamanca said:

OP seems to be intentionally vague about sizes.

My shed probably takes up 1/50th of the garden.

1/6th of a large garden could easily be the size of a shipping container or even bigger.
More details would add some perspective.

Correct. Given the nature of the situation I am not willing to give specifics away however as I had previously said, collectively the sheds take up 1/6th of the garden at the most.

I say 1/6th at most as I’d rather overcompensate the size of them as although they are bigger than what the lease states it is only by a few feet each way, not a considerable amount. I understand this is still outside of what is stated in the lease which is why my question is now whether a deed of variation will resolve this.

In a previous post you said "the garden is a great size" and now that the sheds take up 1/6th of the garden.

1/6th of a large garden = very large sheds.

I know you don't want to give specifics - but if we could see a photo this might give some clue as to why neighbour / freeholder is bothered.

jimbog

scorpiontongue said:

Hoenir said:

Has a neighbour reported you for running a business from the property? 

Not that I’m aware of however the freeholder did not disclose any information to me other than the fact there had been a report. 

Are you running a business from the property as you've said they're not used for storage?

You say they are not significantly bigger than what is permitted, is it possible for a builder or carpenter to reduce their size?

scorpiontongue

jimbog said:

scorpiontongue said:

Hoenir said:

Has a neighbour reported you for running a business from the property? 

Not that I’m aware of however the freeholder did not disclose any information to me other than the fact there had been a report. 

Are you running a business from the property as you've said they're not used for storage?

You say they are not significantly bigger than what is permitted, is it possible for a builder or carpenter to reduce their size?

No business of any sort is being ran from my property. One shed is used for leisure/entertainment, the other has exercise equipment in and that is its main purpose 

scorpiontongue

bobster2 said:

scorpiontongue said:

Tucosalamanca said:

OP seems to be intentionally vague about sizes.

My shed probably takes up 1/50th of the garden.

1/6th of a large garden could easily be the size of a shipping container or even bigger.
More details would add some perspective.

Correct. Given the nature of the situation I am not willing to give specifics away however as I had previously said, collectively the sheds take up 1/6th of the garden at the most.

I say 1/6th at most as I’d rather overcompensate the size of them as although they are bigger than what the lease states it is only by a few feet each way, not a considerable amount. I understand this is still outside of what is stated in the lease which is why my question is now whether a deed of variation will resolve this.

In a previous post you said "the garden is a great size" and now that the sheds take up 1/6th of the garden.

1/6th of a large garden = very large sheds.

I know you don't want to give specifics - but if we could see a photo this might give some clue as to why neighbour / freeholder is bothered.

Totally understand what you’re saying however I would not be willing to share an image of the sheds/my garden. The garden is very large, for a flat. This is not aimed at yourself but other’s comments have questioned the size I stated, common sense would be to remember it is only a flat and my comments are relative to that.

bobster2

scorpiontongue said:

bobster2 said:

scorpiontongue said:

Tucosalamanca said:

OP seems to be intentionally vague about sizes.

My shed probably takes up 1/50th of the garden.

1/6th of a large garden could easily be the size of a shipping container or even bigger.
More details would add some perspective.

Correct. Given the nature of the situation I am not willing to give specifics away however as I had previously said, collectively the sheds take up 1/6th of the garden at the most.

I say 1/6th at most as I’d rather overcompensate the size of them as although they are bigger than what the lease states it is only by a few feet each way, not a considerable amount. I understand this is still outside of what is stated in the lease which is why my question is now whether a deed of variation will resolve this.

In a previous post you said "the garden is a great size" and now that the sheds take up 1/6th of the garden.

1/6th of a large garden = very large sheds.

I know you don't want to give specifics - but if we could see a photo this might give some clue as to why neighbour / freeholder is bothered.

Totally understand what you’re saying however I would not be willing to share an image of the sheds/my garden. The garden is very large, for a flat. This is not aimed at yourself but other’s comments have questioned the size I stated, common sense would be to remember it is only a flat and my comments are relative to that.

Yes - of course. Understand why you wouldn't want to share photos of your garden. What about photos you might be able to find online of similar sheds? E.g. from a manufacturer's site?
My suspicion is - there's something about these sheds that has wound someone up. Without any details - and any measurements - it's not going to be possible for people to understand the problem.

user1977

Swingers' club. Must be.

Section62

bobster2 said:

scorpiontongue said:

bobster2 said:

scorpiontongue said:

Tucosalamanca said:

OP seems to be intentionally vague about sizes.

My shed probably takes up 1/50th of the garden.

1/6th of a large garden could easily be the size of a shipping container or even bigger.
More details would add some perspective.

Correct. Given the nature of the situation I am not willing to give specifics away however as I had previously said, collectively the sheds take up 1/6th of the garden at the most.

I say 1/6th at most as I’d rather overcompensate the size of them as although they are bigger than what the lease states it is only by a few feet each way, not a considerable amount. I understand this is still outside of what is stated in the lease which is why my question is now whether a deed of variation will resolve this.

In a previous post you said "the garden is a great size" and now that the sheds take up 1/6th of the garden.

1/6th of a large garden = very large sheds.

I know you don't want to give specifics - but if we could see a photo this might give some clue as to why neighbour / freeholder is bothered.

Totally understand what you’re saying however I would not be willing to share an image of the sheds/my garden. The garden is very large, for a flat. This is not aimed at yourself but other’s comments have questioned the size I stated, common sense would be to remember it is only a flat and my comments are relative to that.

Yes - of course. Understand why you wouldn't want to share photos of your garden. What about photos you might be able to find online of similar sheds? E.g. from a manufacturer's site?
My suspicion is - there's something about these sheds that has wound someone up. Without any details - and any measurements - it's not going to be possible for people to understand the problem.

I don't really see the point of getting lots of details about the OP's sheds, or even similar ones.  The freeholder says they are in breach of the lease. That is all (except possibly the planning angle) that matters.

I can understand the OP's possible frustration at not knowing who/how they were reported, but nobody on this forum (unless they happen to be the neighbour who did the reporting) will be able to put the OP's mind at rest - any answers we come up with will just be guesses.  E.g. it may be the OP has painted their sheds purple and one of the neigbours hates purple, but that doesn't make any difference now the freeholder is aware of the sheds and says they are too big.  If the OP (wisely) doesn't want to share details which are likely to be irrelevant then that should be the end of it.

LongoBongo

With the OP unwilling to give details of size or wording of the lease, either an 8x6 or 6x4 shed would normally be usual and appropriate for modest domestic garden, if just being used as a garden shed. If there’s something specified in the lease I’d expect it to be one of those 2 sizes.

From the description given (leisure/entertainment and a home gym) it suggests they’ve got a couple of chalet style structures that are used night and day. However cordial relations might seem with neighbours, it wouldn’t be much of a surprise if there had been a complaint.

DE_612183

LongoBongo said:

With the OP unwilling to give details of size or wording of the lease, either an 8x6 or 6x4 shed would normally be usual and appropriate for modest domestic garden, if just being used as a garden shed. If there’s something specified in the lease I’d expect it to be one of those 2 sizes.

From the description given (leisure/entertainment and a home gym) it suggests they’ve got a couple of chalet style structures that are used night and day. However cordial relations might seem with neighbours, it wouldn’t be much of a surprise if there had been a complaint.

Also would suggest that there must be some sort of power supply as well - which is not the norm for a "garden shed" - I assume they are ground floor flat as running electrics from an upstairs flat might be dodgy!

Herzlos

Are they actually sheds or are they outbuildings? It sounds like you've essentially got at least 2 summerhouses, one used as a bar and one as a gym.

Do they look like sheds from outside? Are they used later in the evenings when you'd expect gardens to be quiet?
How many structures are there in total?

a few feet in each direction could be significant. If you're only allowed a normal sized shed, say 8'x6', a few feet in each direction could double the footprint (12'x8').