Crossing the line: will my neighbour's extension put a buyer off if I want to sell my home in future?

My porch sits a few inches inside the boundary and my neighbour says that cleaning will be easier without a gap in between, but could this raise an issue when we come to sell?

Merrily Harpur

Fiona McNulty16 September 2017

Question: My neighbour wants to erect a porch over his front door, and for it to extend over our shared boundary to meet my own porch, which sits a few inches inside the boundary. He says that without a gap, we won’t have to worry about cleaning between the two. My concern is that a buyers’ solicitors would raise it as an issue with either or both of us when selling. Can you advise please?

Answer: When selling residential property the seller should provide the buyer with a Property Information Form which provides a brief history of the property.

The form is a list of questions which the seller must answer truthfully. Some of the enquiries raised in it relate to alterations carried out to the property and to alterations to boundaries.

If you permit your neighbour to encroach on to your land to amalgamate your porch with his, then you should both disclose this to future prospective buyers.

You are certainly entitled to tell your neighbour that you do not agree with his proposal.

Alternatively if you decide to allow him to proceed, it would be prudent to put in place a deed of mutual covenant and grant which should be registered at the Land Registry against the titles to both properties.

As it is your neighbour who wishes the amalgamation to take place you could suggest to him that you will agree, provided his solicitors draft the appropriate deed and that he meets not only his own solicitors’ cost but your legal costs, too.

WHAT’S YOUR PROBLEM?

If you have a question for Fiona McNulty, please email legalsolutions@standard.co.uk or write to Legal Solutions, Homes & Property, London Evening Standard, 2 Derry Street, W8 5EE.

We regret that questions cannot be answered individually, but we will try to feature them here. Fiona McNulty is a solicitor specialising in residential property.

These answers can only be a very brief commentary on the issues raised and should not be relied on as legal advice. No liability is accepted for such reliance. If you have similar issues, you should obtain advice from a solicitor.