Boundary query

Yorky

The boundaries around my house do not correspond with the plan I was given. This 1:500 scale plan is marked "for identifiaction purposes only" but should it differ greatly with what is actually on the ground?

I have asked my solicitor to confirm the boundaries with the other side's solicitor but he has referred me to the legal transfer plan which is 1:1250 scale and it's difficult to tell from that due to the scale.

The other issue is regarding the ownership of the boundary. My understanding was that one owned to the centreline of a hedge. My boundary was fenced by the developer about 60cm forward of the natural boundary and now the agricultural land on the other side of it has been sold for development. I am concerned that my developer may own the strip of land between my fence and the middle of the natural boundary and might allow the new owner of the other land to remove the natural boundary altogether.

Again, I have asked my solicitor to get clarification on this but he has suggested that I get a surveyor to confirm that the plan corresponds with the boundaries as they are.

I maintain that the developer's solicitor should be able to confirm the boundary lines being correct/incorrect and the status of the strip of land between the fence and the centreline of the hedge but my solicitor maintains that I would just be referred back to the transfer plan.

If I do have to have a survey done, I have the following questions:

Can the boundaries be accurately defined by a surveyor and by using which method (laser??)?
How much would it cost approximately?
If the boundaries were marked wrong, would the developer be liable for this cost?

Thanks in advance for any advice on this issue.

antoinolachtnai

When you say they don't correspond, are you saying that the distances don't seem right, or that the shape is completely wrong?

I'm not sure if the survey is going to help your problems much - the surveyor won't have any more maps to go on than you do.

There is practically no chance whatsoever that the developer is going to be paying the surveyor, no matter what the outcome is.

Your surveyor's report is almost certain to be contradicted by the developer if there is a conflict.

My own feeling is that if there is a fence that was put in by the developer, and it is anywhere close to where the boundary is on the unclear map, then that is going to be your boundary.

Is the neighbouring field owned by the same developer as built your house? If it is, I would imagine he deliberately moved your boundary inside the hedge in order to prevent you taking the kind of action you are suggesting. Assuming it was his land, he would probably have been quite entitled to do this.

You could try and get ownership of the land between you and the hedge through adverse possession, but if the land is developed in the next twelve years, then this is unlikely to work. This is something you could ask the solicitor about. (He would be loathe to suggest the idea, and probably rightly so.)

It sounds like the developer has fixed the boundary position by providing you with a fence to clearly mark out the site!

The centreline of a hedge can be a bit vague......

Yorky

Is the neighbouring field owned by the same developer as built your house?

No, and I am very concerned that the new developer will come along and cut down all of the hedge as it would be immaterial to my developer as all of the houses are sold adjoining it.

antoinolachtnai

So why not ask the developer to sell the space between the fence and the hedge to you?