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A New Way to Resolve Boundary Disputes

You’ve probably read newspaper articles about warring neighbours who’ve spent tens of thousands of pounds going to court over a 6 inch strip of land. Until now boundary disputes have been dealt with by the courts and the lack of a statutory framework means that costs often escalate to level well in excess of the value of the land that is being argued over. Fortunately, that may be about to change. read more...

Lease Extension - The Process after your Valuation

In past blogs I have covered the many issues in regards to extending or acquiring a new lease; however most of these have only taken us as far as the point of valuation. This blog will focus on the statutory process once your surveyor has produced his report and also look to highlight some potential pitfalls... read more...

Party Wall and Other Disputes

In statutory areas like the Party Wall etc. Act 1996, as with many property law related matters, procedures and time limits are important. Failure to comply with procedures, as outlined elsewhere on this blog, can prove to be extremely costly. So, remember to take advice about procedures to avoid falling foul of the law on a technicality... read more...

Loft Conversion Guide - Part 2

A few posts ago now I talked about some of the legal aspects of loft conversions, such as Planning Consents and Building Regulation Approvals. In this post I am going to look at some of the practical aspects of designing and building loft conversions. read more...

Marketing a Property With a Short Lease

So what do you do if you are looking to sell and realise that you need to extend your lease? In my opinion there are 2 options... read more...

Case Study - How Using a Professional can save you Money

We’ve written quite a few posts over the last few months on how the Leasehold Reform, Housing and Urban Development Act 1993 works in principle, so we thought it was probably about time to look at a ‘Real World’ example and show how you can benefit from taking professional advice at an early stage... read more...

Reach for the Sky? - Your Loft Conversion Guide

What do you do these days if you live in London and need additional space?...One possible, and increasingly popular solution, is to extend upwards with a loft conversion... read more...

An Overview of Section 12 of the PWA – Part 2

In the first half of this post I looked at how Section 12 of the Act, relating to Security for Expenses, is administered. I explained how such a request is made and the logistics of setting up a fund. In this final part I will look at when it is appropriate to make a request and how the level of security should be determined... read more...

Case Study – Party Wall Award as Agreed Surveyor

The Adjoining Owner to the side where the extension was to be constructed had themselves built a rear extension in recent years which included a party wall i.e. a wall built astride the boundary. Being a party wall it was available for the Building Owner’s use... read more...

Don't be Left Holding the Baby - Section 12 of The PWA

The Party Wall Act grants wide ranging rights to Building Owners, for example, an Adjoining Owner can be happily going about his business when a notice drops on the doormat informing him that in 2 months time his neighbour will demolish the wall that divides their properties; whether he likes it or not. read more...

Essential Guide to Property Surveys

Chartered Surveyors can carry out several different types of surveys to residential properties. The purpose of this article is to give an insight into the different types of reports that are available and the circumstances in which one type of report may be more suitable than another... read more...

Party Wall Questions #8

An Adjoining Owner is served with a notice just days before they are due to exchange contracts on the sale of their property. Do they have a duty to make the incoming Owner aware of the notice and if they consent is the incoming Owner bound by that consent? read more...

Wind Turbines – A Blow’ming good idea?

Although one might assume wind turbines to be a relatively new technology, they are actually based on a simple and historic design with evidence indicating that they were used as early as 1,000 BC... read more...

Party Wall Questions #7

The Government Explanatory Booklet lists certain jobs as being so minor they do not warrant the serving of a notice...Which of the following works would you put in the same category? read more...

Alternative Heating Solutions – Is it time you got Wood?

When thinking of heating and hot water in a domestic situation, generally speaking two options tend to spring to mind, electric and gas. However, despite not being familiar to most consumers there are alternatives on the market... read more...

Rainwater Management Systems – Taking Advantage of the Weather

The United Nations considers the supply of water to be a major ongoing issue for the 21st Century. With global temperatures and the size of the population both on the increase it will become progressively more expensive to meet demand; costs are likely to rise and in extreme case rationing may be necessary. read more...

Freehold Enfranchisement

The vast majority of flats in England and Wales are held on long leases, but many lessees will have the right to acquire the freehold interest in the building that contains their flat... read more...

Found your Perfect Property? – The Hidden Dangers you may have Missed!!

In the comparatively few visits you may make to the property you are about to purchase there may appear little in the way of work or defects to deal with, especially when it has been newly refurbished. The following blog details somewhat typical examples of what you may have missed... read more...

Space Travel Within the Building Sector

Solar panels (photovoltaic panels) are used by millions of homeowners worldwide, allowing them to generate their own electricity...however, the technology was never designed for use within a domestic setting, nor a building setting for that matter. read more...

Building Defects - Dampness Part 1

When we carry out either a Building Survey or a Homebuyer Report one of the first things that the client usually wants to know is whether or not there is any dampness in the property. The inspection of the property will focus quite heavily on this particular aspect... read more...

When Insulating Inside the Box, Try Thinking Outside the Box!

If you’re planning a loft conversion, rear or side extension or perhaps just want an easy way to save a bit a money and keep your home warmer, insulation will no doubt be something that you would have given thought to... read more...

The Leasehold Reform Act - The Concept of New for Old

Many insurance companies offer ‘New for Old’ policies. The Leasehold Reform Act is similar; you can get a new lease in exchange for your old one, but, as usual, there is a price to be paid. read more...

The Dangers of Asbestos

On a recent Full Building Survey of a 1930’s semi detached house, we discovered that the garage roof covering consisted of asbestos tiles. The garage itself was in a poor state of repair and the client had already informed us that if the sale went through she would be demolishing it. read more...

Property Defects - Fireplaces, Chimney Breasts and Flues.

Some time ago we wrote a post on chimney stacks, highlighting some of the common defects that we find when carrying out Building Surveys and Homebuyer Reports. We thought it was about time we dealt with the other end of the operation and talked about the fireplaces, flues and chimney breasts inside the building and how these are connected to the chimney stack above roof level. read more...

Party Wall Questions #6

A leasehold owner of a ground floor flat proposes to underpin the rear external walls (not party walls) of their property. What notice(s) should be served on the Freeholder and the leaseholder of the flat above and what part(s) of the Act apply? read more...

Party Wall Questions #5

What factors should a Surveyor consider when setting the hourly rate to use when calculating expenses for Adjoining Owner appointments? When a proposed fee appears excessive should a Building Owners’ surveyor ask the Adjoining Owner’s surveyor to justify their hourly rate as well as the number of hours on their time sheet? read more...

Leasehold Valuation Calculations - 2 Worked Examples

We’ve looked at the various elements that have to be taken into account in calculating the premium that the lessee will have to pay to the freeholder and we thought that it was about time that we now looked at a worked example of a typical case. read more...

Party Wall Questions #4

I recently arranged to meet a Building Owner’s surveyor on site to prepare a schedule of condition only to find that the foundations to the proposed rear extension had already been excavated and cast. In light of recent case law were we within our rights to produce an Award authorising the excavation work retrospectively. read more...

How to Calculate the Diminution in Value of the Freeholder’s Interest

Generally there will be two elements to take into account. This will be the loss of the income from the ground rent and the loss of the potential reversion at the end of the original lease term. read more...

Plus ça change

We wrote a few weeks ago about how things haven’t changed that much in the residential property field in the last few decades. Just recently we carried out surveys of two flats in London which illustrate this point quite dramatically. read more...

Party Wall Questions #3

Can a Building Owner cast a new mass concrete foundation above and alongside the projecting concrete foundation to an existing party wall and connect the two foundations with a dowel (known as ‘overpinning’) without serving notice? read more...

Party Wall Questions #2

An Owner of a terraced house wishes to convert his original first floor balcony to an additional room. The balcony is built against an original party wall which is enclosed on the Adjoining Owner’s side - the balconies were built on the same side of each house in the terrace. Would Section 11(11) expenses be payable to the Adjoining Owner? read more...

Party Wall Questions #1

An Owner plans to add an additional floor to the back addition of his late Victorian terraced house by raising a studwork wall against the existing party parapet wall – does he have a right of access on to the roof of the Adjoining Owner’s property to apply hanging tiles/flashings? read more...

Property Defects - Chimneys and Flues

When carrying out a building survey we usually start by looking at the exterior of the building and work my way down from the top to the bottom of the structure. One of the first things that we usually see are the chimney stacks. read more...

How Marriage Value is Calculated

We will concentrate in this post on explaining how the landlord’s share of the marriage value is calculated and leave the other areas for a later post. read more...

What is Marriage Value?

Marriage Value may be described as ‘the additional value generated when an enfranchising leaseholder owns both the leasehold and freehold estates. read more...

Diary of an APC candidate - Part 3

What was a little unusual about this particular property was the style in which it had been built, in terms of design it was as far from conventional as it could be, the footprint of the property was essentially a figure eight, with the main living quarters divided between the two circles. The property was also built partially below ground whereby the kitchen and reception rooms were situated on the lower levels. read more...

Diary of an APC candidate: The Story So Far

During the first 6 months of my APC the 'hands on' experience that I have gained has been broadly split between 2 areas of work; Party Wall Matters and Pre Purchase Surveys. read more...

Leasehold Reform

We get quite a few enquiries each week on the subject of Leasehold Reform. The conversion often starts as follows:- ‘I’m thinking about extending the lease on my flat….can you tell me how much it will cost and how do I go about it? read more...

Calling All Reliable Tradespeople

We are constantly looking to add reliable businesses to our list of recommended contractors. There are 3 situations in which we recommend contractors to clients: read more...

Diary of an APC Candidate – Bradley Mackenzie

I joined Peter Barry Surveyors in June this year following the completion of a Masters degree in Real Estate Development at the University of Westminster. read more...

Using the Party Wall Act to Delay a Neighbour's Works

I received an email earlier this week from a lady who was concerned that her neighbour was going to use The Party Wall Act to delay the building of her rear extension. read more...

The HMO Trap

One of the more minor changes that the new coalition Government have made is to partially reverse one of the Labour Government’s final pieces of housing legislature; a requirement for landlords to submit a planning application if they change the use of a property from a single-household home to a House in Multiple Occupation (HMO). read more...

Leaseholders and The Party Wall Act

Complying with the Party Wall Act can get really expensive if the adjoining properties are converted flats read more...

When is an Interim Injunction Justified to Stop Work to a Party Wall?

It’s always difficult to advise people who call us up when a neighbour has started work which comes within the scope of the Party Wall Act but have not served the required notice. read more...

Flat Roof Coverings - Top 5 Defects

Poor workmanship - Installing flat roof coverings, be they felt, asphalt or sheet metal is a specialised job. Many of the problems associated with felt coverings to flat roofs stem from poor workmanship. DIY felt jobs are the biggest culprit and are simply storing up problems for the future. read more...

Pitched Roof Coverings - Top 5 Defects

Roof Spread - It was common throughout the 1970s & 80s for dilapidated slate roofs to be replaced with heavy interlocking concrete tiles. Large concrete tiles weigh considerably more than slates and unless additional supports are provided the rafters will bend under the weight and in extreme cases place additional pressure of the tops of the walls in a defect referred to by surveyors as ‘roof spread’. read more...

Why You Shouldn't Attend Your Survey

I'm asked by clients quite regularly if they can 'drop by' towards the end of a survey inspection to get a ‘quick run down’ - I always politely refuse. I have lost instructions in the past for taking this stance but the more surveys I do the more sure I am that it is correct. read more...

When Were Your Electrics Last Tested?

I last wrote about the New RICS Homebuyer Report on the blog back in July last year. It becomes mandatory at the end of this month after which Chartered Surveyors will no longer be permitted to produce the old style printed version. read more...

The Condensation Season

Being smack bang in the middle of the condensation season I thought it would be a good time to take an overview of what can be one of the most difficult of building defects to resolve. read more...

Property Defects caused by the Big Freeze

Now that the ice has melted on the area’s roads you will have noticed the massive increase in the number of potholes. The problem is caused by water entering through minor defects in the surface of the tarmac, expanding as it freezes and de-laminating the surface. read more...

What to do when your Neighbour Ignores The Party Wall Act

We get 2 or 3 calls most weeks from people that have a neighbour that has gone ahead with work which comes within the scope of the Party Wall Act without serving notice. read more...

Flat Roof Terraces

Flat roofs to single storey rear extensions make such ideal terraces it is surprising that you don't see more of them. The problem is of course that it's very hard to get planning consent for them. If you live in close proximity to your neighbours any sort of raised platform will overlook them and for that reason permission is normally refused. read more...

The Party Wall Act – Common Misunderstandings

The Party Wall etc. Act 1996 has been with us for thirteen years but it is still clear that the public has, at best, a tenuous grip on its details. I have outlined a few of the most common misunderstandings below. read more...

The New RICS Homebuyer Report

Over the last few years I have prepared several hundred RICS Homebuyer Survey & Valuation Reports for our clients. For those that don’t know the ‘Homebuyer Report is what is known as a ‘level 2’ survey; far more comprehensive than a lender’s valuation but not quite as detailed as a Full Building Survey. read more...

Don't Leave it Too Late to Extend Your Lease

If you live in or are considering buying a leasehold property you will want to ensure that the unexpired term of the lease will not have a detrimental affect on the future marketability of the property. read more...

What is the real cost of a HIP?

The RICS announced recently that they are to investigate the practice of agents profiting from the sale of Home Information Packs to sellers. read more...

Selling a Property with Unregulated Changes

Right at the top of the list of things that can bite you on the arse when you come to sell a property is unregulated alterations. read more...

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