Q I live on a street in a small town. All the houses are adjoining with some larger than others. My neighbour's house is one storey higher than mine and his gable-end wall has been leaking into my attic for some time. His gable-end wall is in severe need of repair. Is my neighbour obliged to remedy this problem or should I regard its solving as a matter of joint enterprise?
Also, there is a brick chimney, 12 rows high (about 360 bricks), on top of my neighbour's roof. While it was built about 1,000 years ago, it is now in a bad state that constitutes a clear and present danger to everything underneath. Again, is my neighbour obliged to deal with this – if pointed out to him or is it a matter of joint enterprise?
Any help would be greatly appreciated.
A Generally, the wall in your attic on the boundary will be shared with your neighbour which is a party wall. Where this wall continues above roof level, then it is likely to be in the ownership of your neighbour. However, this may not be the case and the first matter you should address is one of ownership. Once this is understood, then you can look at responsibility for repairs.
If it becomes apparent that your neighbour is responsible and they are willing to repair, you will need to facilitate access from your property to undertake the works. I would check that your neighbour’s builder is properly insured. I would seek evidence, especially as they will be working on and over your property. You should also inform your own building’s insurer.
In the event that your neighbour is unwilling to deal with the problem, then you can revert to the Land and Conveyancing Law Reform Act 2009. Chapter 3 serves to regulate work on boundaries. There are procedures in place to deal with works on party structures where a “building owner” who carries out work can do so even if their neighbour dissents. The neighbour is described in the Act as the “adjoining owner”. The Act gives you rights and responsibilities whichever side of the “fence” you are on.
The Act also provides that the building owner must pay to the adjoining owner the reasonable cost of obtaining professional advice to protect their interests with regard to the method of repairs and pay reasonable compensation for any inconvenience caused. The building owner can also claim from the adjoining owner a contribution to the cost of repair work if it can be proved that the structure is in shared ownership.
The Act is in place to deal with any such disputes, but it is always better to reach agreement rather than resort to dispute.
James Drew is a Chartered Building Surveyor and a member of the Society of Chartered Surveyors Ireland (SCSI)
Garden drainage
Q I purchased a house in January mainly due to the fact that the property had an extensive back garden.When I was viewing the property, the weather was quite bad and I assumed that this was the reason why the garden was so boggy.
Having lived here for six months, the garden is still boggy and having discussed the issue with my neighbours, it would appear they are experiencing a similar situation. I imagine I need to install a drainage system.
Essentially what I am looking for is advice on this process. What is involved, will it cause much disruption during installation, will it be quick and effective and is it costly?
A The issue here is that the ground is retaining water. This is either due to the fact the ground is low-lying and most of the surface water is draining to this area or alternatively the ground conditions have a poor natural drainage. If the issue is as a result of the former, ie low-lying ground, it can be extremely difficult to do anything about this as in effect the actual finished ground level is either at or very close to the water table, ie the water level within the ground. In instances such as this, you could effectively be in a flood plain.
Historically developers took appropriate account of such sites and generally avoided building on them. However the recent building boom and scarcity of land, coupled with poor planning decisions mean there have been some more recent developments in such a situation.
If this is the case, it can prove extremely difficult and expensive to solve the issue and you could find yourself having to artificially reduce the water table by incorporating a sump and pumping excess water away from the site.
While such scenarios exist, this is the less likely of the two situations.
It is more likely that the water lodging here is due to poor natural drainage and this can more often than not be addressed by improving the drainage. This will involve digging trenches, inserting perforated pipes and back-filling with gravel before reinstating the ground.
Whereas this is disruptive, it is relatively inexpensive, particularly if there is good access for machinery. If the access is poor, excavations may have to be done by hand and this tends to increase the costs.
The fact that your neighbour is experiencing a similar problem complicates the situation, because ideally the neighbour should also address the issue in their garden at the same time in order to be fully effective.
It would be necessary to undertake a specific site survey to identify the ground levels and/or soil type to decide on remedial works required. Your local chartered building surveyor will be able to assist you in this regard. Val O'Brien is a Chartered Building Surveyor and a member of the Society of Chartered Surveyors Ireland
Management issue
QRecently our owner management company (OMC) dismantled a wall which had a slight crack without the consent of the residents of the apartment block. It said the wall was unsafe and posed a threat to human life and had to be removed.
It has now furnished us with a price for rebuilding the wall. My questions are: were they entitled to dismantle the wall without our prior consent and is it right that I and the other residents are being asked to cover the cost of rebuilding the wall?
A The subject of essential repair and good condition of common areas is covered in the standard construct of a lease agreement binding the OMC and its members. The section that traditionally outlines the OMC obligations to its members is the fifth schedule of the lease.
Within this schedule you can expect to find verification that the OMC has the obligation and thus the right to effect essential repairs, especially in the circumstances you mention in your question.
Once this risk is known to the OMC the issue of potential litigation which may result from damage or injury must be promptly mitigated as a standard duty of care and as a prerequisite of the insurance policy.
If the risk was not dealt with punctually, you and your fellow OMC members could be facing legal action for negligence in the event of injury or loss.
It would be helpful for all involved if a well presented explanation was included with the communication you received outlining the risk, the action taken, the OMC’s remit and the charge with a minimum of 21 days notice prior to the meeting where the members will vote on the budget.
Provided the development has existed to allow the passing of three years since the first transfer of ownership of a unit in the multi-unit development (MUD), a sinking fund would have been established to address this issue and others in the future.
It is not uncommon for an MUD to have maintenance of a nonrecurring nature and as such the availability of the finances in the sinking fund allow for the works to commence without the need to call a meeting and have the members adopt a budget with the new costs included. Personal injury claims relating to OMCs are a real threat to the cost of cover and to the property agents that serve OMCs whether they are liable or not.
Paul Huberman is a Chartered Property and Facilities Management Surveyor and a member of the Society of Chartered Surveyors Ireland (scsi.ie)
Send your queries to propertyquestions@irishtimes.com or to Property Clinic, The Irish Times, 24-28 Tara Street, Dublin 2. This column is a readers’ service. Advice given is general and individual advice should always be sought
