I've got a dispute with my neighbour!

Disputes over hedges, driveways and unrelenting noise are nothing new but if you are thinking of moving in the current stagnant housing market, it might just pay to keep your annoyance to yourself.

Everybody needs good neighbours. We should be there for one another. Right?

Not if figures from one insurance company are to be believed. According to CPP, a million homeowners have been forced to move because of disputes with their neighbours.

Top of the list of complaints were:

• home and garden maintenance issues,
• excessive noise,
• boundary disputes,
• stolen parking spaces and
• trespassing children.

The trouble is, when it comes to selling up, your battles with those people on the other side of the fence/wall aren’t things you can always keep to yourself.

Telling a purchaser

When it comes to the information you need to tell anyone interested in buying your property, problem neighbours come top of the list.

So if you are in a dispute with your neighbour that has become serious, it’s likely that it’s going to be harder to sell your home. Sometimes, before escalating a neighbourly gripe, it might just pay to be nice to them.

However hard that might be.

HIPs and SPIFs

The Coalition swiftly dumped the much derided HIP in 2010 but it didn’t mean an end to the seller’s obligation to disclose a wealth of information to prospective purchasers.

At the beginning of the conveyancing process sellers have always been required to complete a Sellers Property Information Form, or SPIF, which helps the purchaser get a fuller picture of the type of property they’re buying.

As far as neighbour relations go, the seller must answer three crunch questions:

-          Do you know of any disputes or anything which might lead to a dispute about this or any neighbouring property?

-          Have you received any complaints about anything you have done as owner?

-          Have you made any such complaint to any neighbour about what the neighbour has done?

Of course you’re not obliged to respond to any question you don’t want to - but if you leave the form blank it’s going to set alarm bells ringing with the purchaser’s solicitor that will inevitably lead to more searching enquiries.

Contract

The crucial thing about responses to SPIF questions is that they form part of the conveyancing contract so the buyer is entitled to rely on them.  This means that if a dispute is not mentioned, the seller can be sued by the buyer when that dispute comes to light.

Worryingly for buyers, a survey last year by Halifax Home Insurance showed that 80% of sellers with problem neighbours didn’t tell the buyer.

What to disclose

The contractual nature of buying and selling property means it’s always best to err on the side of caution when deciding what information to disclose.

When it comes to disputes with neighbours however, there are undoubtedly some grey areas over what constitutes a problem.

For example, you might find the noise of children crying next door a major drawback. But a buyer with small children of their own might not see it the same way. Similarly the barking of dogs on a regular basis might drive you mad but if your purchaser is an animal lover with a few dogs of his own, chances are he won’t mind the noise at all.

Keep it informal

In general, the more formal the complaint or dispute, the more likely it is that disclosure will be necessary if you wish to avoid the possibility of future legal action by the buyer.

So, if you have written to your neighbour about a problem, or have contacted the local authority about their behaviour, the dispute should certainly be disclosed.

On the other hand if there have been one or two loud parties next door in the past but the issue was resolved amicably, it is unlikely that you would be required to provide details on the SPIF.

It pays to love thy neighbour

The issue of problem neighbours isn’t just about the legal niceties of a conveyancing contract.  It can be costly.

The Halifax survey found that purchasers will pay up to £5,000 if they can have some kind of guarantee that noisy or problem neighbours won’t be inflicted on them. The same survey estimated that sale prices can be reduced by a whopping £30,000 if a property comes complete with anti social neighbours.

In the current climate that’s not good news. In this case it really does seem that the age old advice of loving thy neighbour is worth taking.

What do you think? Do you have issues with your neighbours? Have you just moved into a property with problem neighbours? Let us know in the comments box below.

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