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Hi
If anybody can advise on the following situation, I would be very grateful.
I bought a freehold end of terrace property about one year ago which has communal grounds including the gardens and a private car park. There is a residents association which is set up as a company which is limited by guarantee. Each new owner of the 15 plots on the estate is automatically made a member of the residents association and joint owners in the same household constitute one member between them. Each member pays an equal annual subscription which goes into a pot to pay for maintenance, the gardener, communal lighting and repairs etc. Of the residents, there are two directors and one of those also acts as secretary.
I had a delay of a few weeks between getting the keys to my property and moving in as, during this time, I was undertaking work on the property. I was naturally focused on the internal work that needed doing at this point. Each property has an outdoor private patio and this looks out on to the garden area. What some homeowners have done, and which has been allowed by the residents association, is adopt a patch of the garden for themselves the other side of the main walkway. Between acquiring the property and moving in, I started noticing that my immediate neighbours, who are also owners as opposed to tenants, were using the garden over the boundary between our properties. It seems that they originally kept their items within the boundary judging by the original patch of artificial grass that they laid which lines up with the boundary. However, they obtained another strip of artificial grass and put this down and placed an outdoor rattan sofa on top of it and some other items. They erected bamboo screening around it and a gazebo too both of which blew down in high winds. This was done before I had any opportunity to do anything myself with the outside space and means that my private patio is overlooked by their seating and that, if they are sat there when I have my back door open (which I like to open during warm weather), they can see into my house from their seated position. I feel very uncomfortable with this arrangement especially now that it is getting warmer and I would like to open my back door and be able to use my private patio without people staring back at me.
For added context, I feel I should add that other encroachments on my boundaries by these particular neighbours have taken place. That includes: hanging washing over my wall and using a dryer that was placed so that it overhung my patio with trousers and knickers dangling in my space; allowing their child to draw on my property all along the side in chalk which I washed off myself (it was too sheltered to be washed off by rain); washing my windows without asking and then charging for it (he is a window cleaner); cutting the corner right in front of my front window rather than using the proper walkways; asking me to move my car from an unallocated parking space so he could use it to fill up his van with water for window cleaning and; generally not respecting the rules surrounding the car park. I have had to ask directly that they refrain from some of these things and on some occasions have met with a frosty reception meaning it is an additionally awkward situation for me.
I asked the secretary of the residents association about my situation whereby I am overlooked by their use of the garden and she said that the understanding is that people should not use the garden as their "own" beyond property boundaries. A letter was sent about this to residents but the situation did not change. There have also been a number of letters reminding residents about the parking rules but these letters are going ignored too.
The current situation is that I agreed with the secretary to write directly to the neighbours, copying the residents association in, explaining how uncomfortable I feel about being overlooked and asking to move their items back within boundary lines. This was only a few days ago but the letter has not been acknowledged, things have not changed and I don't expect them to. A special meeting may then be held for the residents to discuss this matter so I anticipate that will be the next step. I doubt very much that my immediate neighbours will attend. It may be helpful to present some possible solutions at that meeting in the understanding of what rights I and/or the residents association have against those who ignore the wishes of the majority of residents. So if anyone has any suggestions, I would love to hear them.
In terms of what I am thinking, I wonder if the residents association could formally write to the neighbours and ask for their items to be moved by a deadline date (e.g. within 14 days) and, if they fail to do so, their items will be moved for them (e.g. by me with some support from other neighbours, friends or family). After that, I would like to put up some screening where the property boundary is.
In addition, if anyone has any suggestions regarding what can be done about the parking issues, this would be very welcome too. Although this is a niggle of mine, it is even more of a headache for the secretary. The car park has allocated spaces for households without a garage plus unallocated parking for the rest of us. Because there is limited space, the understanding is that it can only accommodate one car per household and that visitors should park in the road. Commercial vehicles are prohibited under a restrictive covenant. The problems are that we have multiple cars per household parking in it including visitors sometimes blocking access to the garages or emergency vehicle access and often making if difficult to get in and out of the spaces including those which are allocated. The neighbour's (arguably commercial) van and a truck also frequent the car park which, in my opinion, are too big to be accommodated.
Thanks in advance for any suggestions.
If anybody can advise on the following situation, I would be very grateful.
I bought a freehold end of terrace property about one year ago which has communal grounds including the gardens and a private car park. There is a residents association which is set up as a company which is limited by guarantee. Each new owner of the 15 plots on the estate is automatically made a member of the residents association and joint owners in the same household constitute one member between them. Each member pays an equal annual subscription which goes into a pot to pay for maintenance, the gardener, communal lighting and repairs etc. Of the residents, there are two directors and one of those also acts as secretary.
I had a delay of a few weeks between getting the keys to my property and moving in as, during this time, I was undertaking work on the property. I was naturally focused on the internal work that needed doing at this point. Each property has an outdoor private patio and this looks out on to the garden area. What some homeowners have done, and which has been allowed by the residents association, is adopt a patch of the garden for themselves the other side of the main walkway. Between acquiring the property and moving in, I started noticing that my immediate neighbours, who are also owners as opposed to tenants, were using the garden over the boundary between our properties. It seems that they originally kept their items within the boundary judging by the original patch of artificial grass that they laid which lines up with the boundary. However, they obtained another strip of artificial grass and put this down and placed an outdoor rattan sofa on top of it and some other items. They erected bamboo screening around it and a gazebo too both of which blew down in high winds. This was done before I had any opportunity to do anything myself with the outside space and means that my private patio is overlooked by their seating and that, if they are sat there when I have my back door open (which I like to open during warm weather), they can see into my house from their seated position. I feel very uncomfortable with this arrangement especially now that it is getting warmer and I would like to open my back door and be able to use my private patio without people staring back at me.
For added context, I feel I should add that other encroachments on my boundaries by these particular neighbours have taken place. That includes: hanging washing over my wall and using a dryer that was placed so that it overhung my patio with trousers and knickers dangling in my space; allowing their child to draw on my property all along the side in chalk which I washed off myself (it was too sheltered to be washed off by rain); washing my windows without asking and then charging for it (he is a window cleaner); cutting the corner right in front of my front window rather than using the proper walkways; asking me to move my car from an unallocated parking space so he could use it to fill up his van with water for window cleaning and; generally not respecting the rules surrounding the car park. I have had to ask directly that they refrain from some of these things and on some occasions have met with a frosty reception meaning it is an additionally awkward situation for me.
I asked the secretary of the residents association about my situation whereby I am overlooked by their use of the garden and she said that the understanding is that people should not use the garden as their "own" beyond property boundaries. A letter was sent about this to residents but the situation did not change. There have also been a number of letters reminding residents about the parking rules but these letters are going ignored too.
The current situation is that I agreed with the secretary to write directly to the neighbours, copying the residents association in, explaining how uncomfortable I feel about being overlooked and asking to move their items back within boundary lines. This was only a few days ago but the letter has not been acknowledged, things have not changed and I don't expect them to. A special meeting may then be held for the residents to discuss this matter so I anticipate that will be the next step. I doubt very much that my immediate neighbours will attend. It may be helpful to present some possible solutions at that meeting in the understanding of what rights I and/or the residents association have against those who ignore the wishes of the majority of residents. So if anyone has any suggestions, I would love to hear them.
In terms of what I am thinking, I wonder if the residents association could formally write to the neighbours and ask for their items to be moved by a deadline date (e.g. within 14 days) and, if they fail to do so, their items will be moved for them (e.g. by me with some support from other neighbours, friends or family). After that, I would like to put up some screening where the property boundary is.
In addition, if anyone has any suggestions regarding what can be done about the parking issues, this would be very welcome too. Although this is a niggle of mine, it is even more of a headache for the secretary. The car park has allocated spaces for households without a garage plus unallocated parking for the rest of us. Because there is limited space, the understanding is that it can only accommodate one car per household and that visitors should park in the road. Commercial vehicles are prohibited under a restrictive covenant. The problems are that we have multiple cars per household parking in it including visitors sometimes blocking access to the garages or emergency vehicle access and often making if difficult to get in and out of the spaces including those which are allocated. The neighbour's (arguably commercial) van and a truck also frequent the car park which, in my opinion, are too big to be accommodated.
Thanks in advance for any suggestions.
