An owner of an estate was recently successful in preventing the creation of a public right of way, thanks to a previous owner who had disputed a planning enquiry nearly 30 years previously. The dispute involved a pathway which a local planning inspector decided should be designated a public right of way. The title to the… read the rest
In a recent case, a man who was banned from entering the village in which he had previously lived, after successive acts of anti-social behaviour, has lost his appeal against the imposition of an anti-social behaviour injunction (ASBI). Michael Redpath had lived in Warneage Green in Wiltshire for 48 years and had a history of… read the rest
After a property has been used in contravention of planning law for ten years, the owner can apply for a certificate of lawful use to legitimise the new use. (If the breach of planning law relates to an unauthorised structure or an unauthorised use as a dwelling, this can be done after four years). Recently, the owner of a cottage… read the rest
After fighting their case all the way to the House of Lords and losing, Powys couple Andrew and Gail Wallbank have been forced to sell their farm in order to pay for repairs to the chancel of their local church and their legal costs in fighting their case. When the couple first acquired the property,… read the rest
Ownership of land is often fettered with obligations and, in some circumstances, the obligation can be to permit someone else to extract something from the land. In legal terminology, this is called a profit-à-prendre and one of the most common of these is the right to graze animals. Where such a right exists, the owner… read the rest
The Court of Appeal has overturned the ruling that a boat owner who had moored his boat to the river bed of the Thames had acquired legal title to the land. The Court accepted that it was possible to acquire the title by adverse possession (‘squatter’s rights’), but ruled that this had not been demonstrated to have occurred in this… read the rest
Where an agreement is entered into as a result of a misrepresentation, the court can order the agreement to be set aside. This recently benefited a wife who entered into an agreement which meant that her sole beneficial interest in the family home was surrendered. The wife did so based on a misunderstanding following an… read the rest
A case dealing with the parking rights relating to three adjoined houses (all part of a development of older agricultural buildings) has been decided by the Court of Appeal. It has implications for developers of similar properties, such as barn conversions. The case produced (in the judge’s words) a ‘snowstorm of incidents and issues’ relating… read the rest
An appearance in the criminal court may await a property owner who tried to be too clever with his local planning department. The property owner submitted a planning application to build a barn to store hay. This was granted on the condition that use was limited to the storage of hay or some other agricultural… read the rest
When someone must cross a piece of someone else’s land to access their own, the land crossed is known as a ‘ransom strip’, because the price which must be paid for the right to cross the land is often heavy. In a recent case, two neighbours were in dispute over a piece of land which… read the rest
Although we have become used to the Government announcing initiatives which never see the light of day (or announcing them as new initiatives months or years later), the news that Home Information Packs (HIPs) have been scrapped by the new Government will cause no surprises. HIPs, introduced after a rather unsuccessful trial in Bristol and… read the rest
In a recent case involving an attempt to rescind a contract to purchase a leasehold property, the High Court ruled that where a special condition of sale is written into a contract and this is inconsistent with the usual standard conditions of sale, the standard conditions of sale will prevail unless the relevant clauses are… read the rest
A recent planning case in the Court of Appeal produced what the judge described as a ‘surprising outcome’. Alan Beesley had been granted planning permission by Welwyn Hatfield Council to build a barn on green belt land, for agricultural use only. The Council granted his request on the basis that his application stated that the… read the rest
Following a change in the law, a tenant can no longer have the status of a ‘tolerated trespasser’. Under the old regime, a tenant who had defaulted on their rent could, by paying the rent after a possession order had been made, become a tolerated trespasser, if the landlord did not seek to enforce the… read the rest
Those who buy new homes ‘off plan’ now have significant new protection under the Consumer Code for Home Builders, which came into affect on 1 April 2010. The Code requires builders of houses to keep buyers informed of the progress of the construction work. It specifically requires builders to provide ‘reliable and realistic’ information regarding… read the rest
It is normal for properties to contain covenants of different sorts and one which is common in residential estates is a covenant not to do anything which causes a nuisance to nearby property owners. The Court of Appeal recently had to consider whether such a covenant would stop the building of an extension to a… read the rest
A landlord who decided to go for a stroll when the hearing of his case was delayed was left to count the cost of the judge’s displeasure recently. During the hot weather last July, the landlord, who was contesting his tenant’s right to have her deposit refunded, attended Guildford County Court for the hearing. As… read the rest
Lending for residential property purchases has increased significantly in recent months – the July figure of £16 billion showing a 26 per cent rise over June. August and September have both shown gross mortgage lending of about £12.5 billion, which, whilst a considerable improvement on the beginning of the year, is still well below levels… read the rest
An easement is a right over someone else’s land, such as a right of way. rights of easement are frequently forgotten about, but a recent case shows the importance of making sure that an easement does not lapse through disuse. It involved neighbours, one of whom had been granted an easement in 1980 permitting access… read the rest
Here are all the forms that you will need to complete when you are instructing us for a purchase, sale or remortgage. Simply download the form in PDF format or as a Word Document, answer the questions to the best of your ability and return the form to us as soon as possible, as we will… read the rest
If you are a landlord, it is vital that you are aware of the requirement, introduced in April 2007, that all deposits (for rent up to £25,000 per annum) taken by landlords and letting agents for Assured Shorthold Tenancies in England and Wales must be protected by a tenancy deposit protection scheme. There are two… read the rest
If landowners allow other people to use their land over a long period, they may lose the right to prevent such use in the future. An ‘easement’ (the right of use over someone else’s property) is created when use of someone else’s land has taken place for more than 20 years. In a recent case, a woman claimed an… read the rest
When an easement exists over land, as a general rule it cannot compel the landowner to do anything, it can only prevent them from stopping something being done. This proved the undoing of a developer, who bought a piece of land, intending to build an office block. The land benefited from an easement granting access… read the rest
