In an ideal world, we would all have fantastic neighbours and enjoy a good relationship with them. However, this is unfortunately not something that happens in the real world, as many people come to blows with their neighbours – from things like parking problems to loud music at anti-social hours, most people have had to deal with a problematic next door neighbour at some point in their lives.
Something that causes a lot of trouble between neighbours is a boundary dispute. This is something that can happen when a person moves in, or something that a neighbour might notice when the other homeowner builds a wall or a fence along where they think the boundary is, only for the neighbour to not believe this is the case – this is how a boundary dispute starts.
One thing that people who are dealing with this can do, to get clarification on where the boundary actually is, is to look into either the land registry or (and this is the better option) the deeds for the property known as pre-registration deeds. Once you have these deeds, they should be shared with the neighbour – be warned, they can vary wildly in quality, and it is not always completely clear from them where the boundary actually should be.
Something that you should try to avoid from the start if possible is escalating the situation and letting blame and aggression get the better of you – ultimately, this is something that will not be helpful to either side, so working together to resolve the dispute is the much better way of going about dealing with this problem when it arises.
Something else that can often be done is to get in touch with a solicitor who specialises in these sorts of disputes, such as this Ascot Solicitors www.parachutelaw.co.uk However, do be mindful of the fact that the more people that you involve, the more it will cost, and often if not handled carefully, the cost of dealing with the dispute and fighting it can be more than the value of the land. So it is certainly worth getting some legal advice on how to proceed with this if you are unsure.
Ultimately, there are many ways that you can deal with a boundary dispute, and you should look into all the options carefully before deciding what you are going to do about it and take action to change it. There are other things to be aware of that may also affect your case, such as a change in boundary agreement by the previous owners of the property, as well as adverse possession of land – something that can be done if it is used solely by that property for 10 years or so, however this can be a grey area, so it may be worth looking into and checking where you stand legally with it.