Buying a Property on Private Road

bamgbost · 9 July 2018 at 1:17PM

Hi

We are first time buyers. Seen a dream house, located in a residential area, but so happens that you turn off the main street onto an adjourning street with 5 houses. And they happen to be on a Private Road.

we asked the estate agent more, and they said it just means every so often you club together to replace the tarmac when required. Theres no maintenance charge or anything.

From experience is there anything to be concerned about, or to further ask?

Any advise is welcome

need_an_answer · 9 July 2018 at 1:28PM

bamgbost wrote: »

Hi

From experience is there anything to be concerned about, or to further ask?

Any advise is welcome

You need to consider the aspect of road maintenance and make your own judgement.

I live on a private shared with 4 houses we have just paid in the region of £25k between us for a new surface.

Admittedly it probably hasn't been done for maybe 100 years but we as the current occupiers have had to bear the cost of those who have gone previously and those who will no doubt go until the next resurface is due.

Something else to possibly consider is abandoned vehicles.Someone can quite easily abandon a vehicle on the road and as it is a private entity you will need to pay the council for its removal if you are unable to persuade the owner to move it.
Again whilst this isn't common we have had 3 in the last year.

Street lighting sometimes stops at the point where the road becomes private so just check that you feel the house and area around wont be plunged into darkness come 6pm on a winters evening.

Is rubbish collected from the road or do the existing occupants need to take it to a designated spot on the adopted road. we have to take ours to a designated point but arrangements for that type of thing is usually made locally and there isn't a one size fits all approach.

Have you spoken to the vendors of the property and asked them what impact living on a private road has,they may be far more willing to share experiences with you than the agent who afterall is simply trying to sell you it.
OR even get into a conversation with a neighbour when you are wandering around the area if you want a slightly less biased view.

Malks · 9 July 2018 at 2:04PM

Used to live on a Private Road, and it did have a good sense of community but there were pitfalls, but we all banded together and formed a Residents Association to help with it. (There were 12 houses in the road.

As has been pointed out already, the biggest cost was resurfacing, but we had a shingle road without tarmac, so each household paid 5 per month into the Residents Association account and that took care of the cost, it was done when we thought it needed doing. We also used to insure the road, for Public liability, as effectively if someone had an accident in the road, they could take action against the Residents association.

http://www.privateroads.co.uk/home has some good information on buying in a Private Road.

Parking wasn’t a problem for us, but we did have signs up saying Private Road no Unauthorised parking.

Street Lighting was an issue as we had to pay for it to be replaced, although this was cheap trying to find a company to do it was difficult. (The local council did quote for the work, but we could have had 4 lights replaced for what they wanted to charge for 1!)

On the plus side we had some fantastic street parties over the summer, BBQ’s being pulled out into the road.

Hoploz · 9 July 2018 at 5:32PM

Check out the condition of the road. If its in good nick that's fine, you'll prob be ok for a good few years.

If it isn't then there's two problems - it may cost a bomb to re-do, and it'll need everybody to agree to cough up.

I looked at a house on an unmade road, it was in a terrible state with massive potholes you almost needed a 4x4 to get to the house! Estate agent said the owners said "don't worry the farmer down the road brings his digger down and levels it off every few years - its due to be done now, probably be done by the time you complete." .... I didnt believe it could get that bad within just a few years. That was 4 years ago and it's never been touched and has got even worse. The house is almost inaccessible depending on what car you've got and how low it is!

moneyistooshorttomention · 9 July 2018 at 5:52PM

bamgbost wrote: »

we asked the estate agent more, and they said it just means every so often you club together to replace the tarmac when required. Theres no maintenance charge or anything.

/QUOTE]

Ask the EA and/or vendor to be more specific about the "every so often you club together" aspect.

Does this mean:

1. There is a residents association - with formal meetings/officers/etc.

2. Everyone in the road discusses things together informally at events "over the garden wall" and everyone decides things together jointly on this informal basis.

3. Someone somewhere has been used to operating by diktat and ordering the other residents what to do - ie "I have decided and you will all do/pay/etc as I have decided". That scenario is a possibility - even though it's now the 21st century and things should obviously be done democratically with everyone having their "fair share of the say". NB: No. 3 might possibly be the case if there is a "known owner" of the road - ie they might throw their weight around and not acknowledge everyone else being entitled to their "say". Some people are fair-minded and know we live in the 21st century - others are bossy and would like to transport others back several centuries as to "how things are done".

bamgbost · 10 July 2018 at 2:50PM

Cool. Thank you all for the tips and advice. I am a bit weary about proceeding tbh. Esp as first time buyer. Last thing we want is an unexpected surprise.

lisyloo · 10 July 2018 at 3:01PM

Does this mean:

1. There is a residents association - with formal meetings/officers/etc.

Not usually in my experience.
Getting work done on roads is pretty rare and if it's in good nick then decades should go past with nothing needng doing.

It's not the same as (for example) sharing a garden where things would need doing weekly.

spadoosh · 10 July 2018 at 3:07PM

The only private road i know of locally is full of NIMBYs. They get together each year to man a barrier to prevent people parking on thier road for the on annual event held nearby.

To be fair theyre clinging on to what they have left pf a road.

My mate lived there growing up, i remember him telling me that they had to pay for the repairs/resurfacing. 18 years later and it might as well be a shingle road. Occasionally you get an owner sorting out a little bit in front of their house. Cant imagine itll ever get resurfaced.

heatherw_01 · 10 July 2018 at 3:11PM

We live on one and we had years of problems with the drains as they are our problem. Had flooding for years.
Road is in a state but no one will pay towards getting it repaired.

Would never live on a private road again tbh. Obviously this is just my experience but it has been horrible.

moneyistooshorttomention · 10 July 2018 at 3:29PM

heatherw_01 wrote: »

We live on one and we had years of problems with the drains as they are our problem. Had flooding for years.
Road is in a state but no one will pay towards getting it repaired.

Would never live on a private road again tbh. Obviously this is just my experience but it has been horrible.

Quick thought - did you know that the drains aren't your problem (ie any longer)?

One thing I was aware of was the "What happens if the drains go wrong?" scenario and, fortunately, the law changed only a few years ago to state that anything drains-wise outside a persons private property is now the responsibility of the local Water Board - ie even if it's in a private road.

So it doesn't matter one bit to me if the drains go wrong - as long as it's outside my own private garden that's down on my own personal Title Plan as belonging to me personally. Outside that - down to the Water Board. Presumably the same applies even if there is a "known owner" of the road? (ie as the drains will be underneath the "road").

need_an_answer · 10 July 2018 at 3:35PM

moneyistooshorttomention wrote: »

Quick thought - did you know that the drains aren't your problem (ie any longer)?

One thing I was aware of was the "What happens if the drains go wrong?" scenario and, fortunately, the law changed only a few years ago to state that anything drains-wise outside a persons private property is now the responsibility of the local Water Board - ie even if it's in a private road.

So it doesn't matter one bit to me if the drains go wrong - as long as it's outside my own private garden that's down on my own personal Title Plan as belonging to me personally. Outside that - down to the Water Board. Presumably the same applies even if there is a "known owner" of the road? (ie as the drains will be underneath the "road").

I'd certainly say to the poster to check their deeds although in some cases the boundary of the property actually extends across the private road.

In our case we own half the road and an opposite neighbour owns the other half creating the width of the road between us in our deeds.

The caveat for us is we need to allow a right of access over the road to any user.

PLEASE READ BEFORE POSTING

Buying a Property on Private Road

Comments

Categories

Get our FREE Weekly email full of deals & guides - and it’s spam-free