New House Built Very Close To Boundary

[cabanlit]

I was under the impression that you could build to 50cm of a boundary if the wall contains no windows. If the wall has windows then you cannot go closer than 2m.

Have always been quoted this but never seen a source so may be well wrong.

Have any permissions to build been obtained by the plot owner?

This is also my understanding. except i think it no outward opening windows. solid windows or sliders are ok.

Op if you think its a problem pop down the local land office and check. And if you get an answer please report back.

Not land office, the OrBorTor is the place to go.

[easybullet3]

i think you answered this question yourself!!!
its WITHIN HIS BOUNDARY!!!

as long as nothing from his place hangs over your boundary.

but if its in his legal boundary, then its his to do as he pleases.

thats logic.

unless there is some kind of thai law saying he CANT do what he wants in his own land! which would suck!

[Anon999]

I was under the impression that you could build to 50cm of a boundary if the wall contains no windows. If the wall has windows then you cannot go closer than 2m.

Have always been quoted this but never seen a source so may be well wrong.

Have any permissions to build been obtained by the plot owner?

My builder told me 2 metres from the boundary and that was for the garage wall. My wife says the Sub-District Municipal Office will know.

[lucjoker]

If you are not happy with people building right on the boundary wall,

the only thing is to take it to court,

it can take years and years and a lot of money for lawyers,

in the end ,if the faulty party gives the judge enough teamoney .....you will loose !

And thats a fact.

So ,see it as "shit happens"

[HaleySabai]

Get it stopped now, obvious the roof will overlap direct to you.

....Yes, and the rain run-off is going directly into your house..... get out their NOW and see what kind of house plan they are attempting to construct. If they succeed in building this thing your own property will be severely devalued.

Edited May 20, 2013 by HaleySabai

[mccw]

Maybe it will be a flat roof or different way pitched. A smile and a chat would do you better than mr grumpy storming around trying to get the local officials involved when you don't even know all the details.

[steve_dench]

I am a builder and I understand your concerns, what worries me most is why you waited so long to react to the situation! It would have been obviuous that there was going to be a problem as soon as they started digging footings, that would have been the time to discuss the problem with the neighbour,

Now you can only lose. If you are able to get the building stopped, which is ulikely, you will have alienated your neighbour and the rest of the community.

[teacherofwoe]

Quick! Build a new boundary wall just on your side of the existing boundary wall and make it higher than the end of his roof before he gets it up. He'll have to rethink his roof and any windows on that side of the house.

[jacko45k]

Get it stopped now, obvious the roof will overlap direct to you.

And guess where the rainwater will cascade!

[jacko45k]

Get it stopped now, obvious the roof will overlap direct to you.

He may just get away with it if it's a gable end, but if it was my place I would be asking a lot of questions of the builder.

Yes, my gable ends have roof overhang of about 75cm.

Looks like a land grab. Softly softly as these kinds of disputes can produce strong reactions.

[naboo]

I am a builder and I understand your concerns, what worries me most is why you waited so long to react to the situation! It would have been obviuous that there was going to be a problem as soon as they started digging footings, that would have been the time to discuss the problem with the neighbour,

Now you can only lose. If you are able to get the building stopped, which is ulikely, you will have alienated your neighbour and the rest of the community.

My OP wasn't that long, you could have read it.

Its not my house, my brother in law's. They are Thai, don't want to say anything.

The house is being built by a developer, not an individual. Houses not yet sold. Going to government officials would be more productive than talking to the developer, who wouldn't give a $&!+.

[Crocbait]

I have just gone through a similar problem. The neighbors told us that their house was going to be 50cm from the boundary...ok that's the law! When the post and beams were in and we measured, it was only at most 40cm or less. My wife had been away and when she came home she tried to talk to the owners very politely about it. The owner was quite rude and insulting to my wife, so she made them pull the posts and beams out and move them. She also told them they can not have any windows in the wall and no roof overhang. If the owner had been nicer we probably couldn't have cared. Evidently if the wall is 50cm from the boundary, you cannot have any type of window in the wall, not even glass bricks...evidently so light produced inside the house does not project to the neighboring land. As mentioned in previous posts, this is the building code in Thailand and can be enforced anywhere according to my wife. She also made the builders put up a temporary barrier to stop all the building rubble coming on our land. The builder claimed he was not aware of these laws, now he has to pay for the alterations.

[Hunter88]

In most Thai cities like Pattaya, the law states that a building must be no closer than 2 meters from the property line.

[Morakot]

Quick! Build a new boundary wall just on your side of the existing boundary wall and make it higher than the end of his roof before he gets it up.

How about a five metre high makeshift fence tomorrow if talking to the neighbour does not work today?

Edited May 21, 2013 by Morakot

[julemanden]

I was under the impression that you could build to 50cm of a boundary if the wall contains no windows. If the wall has windows then you cannot go closer than 2m.

Have always been quoted this but never seen a source so may be well wrong.

Have any permissions to build been obtained by the plot owner?

no windows or any other opening and you can built without leaving any distance (according to Pattaya building department).

Wrong!

[SantiSuk]

I was under the impression that you could build to 50cm of a boundary if the wall contains no windows. If the wall has windows then you cannot go closer than 2m.

Have always been quoted this but never seen a source so may be well wrong.

Have any permissions to build been obtained by the plot owner?

no windows or any other opening and you can built without leaving any distance (according to Pattaya building department).

Wrong!

We are all overwhelmed by the authoritative style of your posting :-) Edited May 21, 2013 by SantiSuk

[Morakot]

I was under the impression that you could build to 50cm of a boundary if the wall contains no windows. If the wall has windows then you cannot go closer than 2m.

Have always been quoted this but never seen a source so may be well wrong.

Have any permissions to build been obtained by the plot owner?

no windows or any other opening and you can built without leaving any distance (according to Pattaya building department).

Wrong!

We are all overwhelmed by the authoritative style of your posting :-)

...and its informative nature, specifying the actual situation in detail and providing references.

[Farma]

The local tessaban planning office is the only way to sort this problem out.

My wife has just built using the property rear wall as a wall for an extension. Both rear and side neighbours are part of th tessabn planning department. Both had no objections to our plans.

The only stipulation was no water runoff into the adjacent property and roof to a maximum height of 2.5 metres.

Obviously these requirements may vary depending on where you live.

[comserve]

We live in Buriram and have Thai neighbours who live in a house that I can only describe as very, very basic. It is built on 20 sq wah & virtually fills the whole area but it had a legal set back from our boundary.

A couple of months ago they decided to "renovate". One part of their renovation was to relocate their bathroom. Their bathroom now is built with the outer wall right beside our front door about 5cms from our dividing wall. A thai bathroom is often not that sanitary and along with the smell of their cooking with rubber fire boosters, the smell of this bathroom is often quite choice!

Obviously the building is illegal however my wife says if we complain we leave ourselves open to a visit from the neighbour armed with a gun or a knife.

I have already had that experience when I asked him to move a huge road-making machine which he insisted on parking outside my house almost on top of the greenery we have on a very narrow verge.

Any advise as to how to deal with such a situation without risking your wellbeing??

[Morakot]

We live in Buriram and have Thai neighbours who live in a house that I can only describe as very, very basic. It is built on 20 sq wah & virtually fills the whole area but it had a legal set back from our boundary.

A couple of months ago they decided to "renovate". One part of their renovation was to relocate their bathroom. Their bathroom now is built with the outer wall right beside our front door about 5cms from our dividing wall. A thai bathroom is often not that sanitary and along with the smell of their cooking with rubber fire boosters, the smell of this bathroom is often quite choice!

Obviously the building is illegal however my wife says if we complain we leave ourselves open to a visit from the neighbour armed with a gun or a knife.

I have already had that experience when I asked him to move a huge road-making machine which he insisted on parking outside my house almost on top of the greenery we have on a very narrow verge.

Any advise as to how to deal with such a situation without risking your wellbeing??

Difficult to say, but a non-confrontational approach would be advisable as it could easy spiral out of control. I would think a third-party some respected (village) elder, who would mediate between your family and the neighbour's, could help to resolve the problem.

Edited May 21, 2013 by Morakot

[Furbie]

I actually had a neighbour USE our boundary wall as foundation for the end of his extension whilst I was gone for a few months.The roof was cut so as not to run off or overhang.Bottom line Nothing I could about it.

My one option was to go to court, after enquiring I was informed it would take at least 2 years then they would have the option to appeal. I gave up after hearing even if ruled in my favour after all that, getting it knocked down would be even more work.

Thailand at it's best.

I would sort this out. At my GFs family home, the neighbor built their back and front wall into their side wall, my GF's family did nonthing. Last year, they came back home to see that the same neighbors were building another floor to part of their house, and they attached the supporting framework to my GF’s family wall; which unfortunately, could not support it and started to fall apart. Naturally, they told the neighbor they had to fix the wall. The neighbor then claimed the wall was actually theirs and they did not need to fix it. As proof, they indicated that their back and front wall were connected to it – of course, this would also push my GF’s family’s property boundary back. It took some time to sort out, and in the end, my GFs father just got frustrated and rebuilt the wall himself, though the land issue was settled in their favor. Keep in mind, this is in Bangkok.

[mccw]

We live in Buriram and have Thai neighbours who live in a house that I can only describe as very, very basic. It is built on 20 sq wah & virtually fills the whole area but it had a legal set back from our boundary.

A couple of months ago they decided to "renovate". One part of their renovation was to relocate their bathroom. Their bathroom now is built with the outer wall right beside our front door about 5cms from our dividing wall. A thai bathroom is often not that sanitary and along with the smell of their cooking with rubber fire boosters, the smell of this bathroom is often quite choice!

Obviously the building is illegal however my wife says if we complain we leave ourselves open to a visit from the neighbour armed with a gun or a knife.

I have already had that experience when I asked him to move a huge road-making machine which he insisted on parking outside my house almost on top of the greenery we have on a very narrow verge.

Any advise as to how to deal with such a situation without risking your wellbeing??

Good luck but for me if he were really such a lunatic I'd think seriously about moving.

[comserve]

I would be very reluctant to move. We have been here for over 5 years. The house was a new spec house when we bought it & I've put a lot of work into it like having to almost replumb the place (as the 'new house' plumbing was only half done. I've also got a pretty nice 20,000 ltr fresh water storage & reticulation water supply system going here).

I think I may be better to make this neighbour a purchase offer he cannot refuse!!

[Bung]

My understanding is the your roofs drip line must be within your boundary. You can't have a neighbours rain water falling off their roof into your property. Looking at the OPs picture I can't see how that buildings drip line is in their land.

First thing he needs to do is establish his boundarys with a chanote and marker pegs. You can get the Amphur to come out and confirm this for about B 3000. Then you can move forward. From the picture, the wall is already broken so you need to establish where your boundary is. An added bonus is when the Amphur is out checking it they can see what is going on but this takes a month to happen in Chiang Mai, I would be talking to as many poo Yai bans etc as I can and get them out. May cost a bottle of whiskey but at least it shows you mean business.

[jpduggan]

50cm or 5cm?

F.Y.O. 50cms =19.5inchs

5cms =2inches

What does it look like to you?

[whybother]

50cm or 5cm?

F.Y.O. 50cms =19.5inchs

5cms =2inches

What does it look like to you?

Well, that depends on where the boundary line is. If it's at the pavement, then clearly that would be about 50cm. If the boundary is at the concrete fence, then that doesn't look like 50cm.

If the gap between the back part of the fence and the building is 50cm, that would make the concrete posts about a metre wide.

The OP did clarify in his next post that the fence was leaning.

[rubberduck]

Quick! Build a new boundary wall just on your side of the existing boundary wall and make it higher than the end of his roof before he gets it up. He'll have to rethink his roof and any windows on that side of the house.

Creative thinking, I would do the same !

It also prevents the own garden from getting soaked after a heavy rain and the problem will stay at his side.

When using natural stone you can have the wall beautiful deorated with plants growing against it, also creates way more privacy so it's a win-win situation and can become a great upgrade of the garden, and no peeping neigbours over the wall.

another creative idea

Of course the other side your wall will looks rough and very very ugly.

Edited May 21, 2013 by rubberduck

[mccw]

Quick! Build a new boundary wall just on your side of the existing boundary wall and make it higher than the end of his roof before he gets it up. He'll have to rethink his roof and any windows on that side of the house.

Creative thinking, I would do the same !

It also prevents the own garden from getting soaked after a heavy rain and the problem will stay at his side.

When using natural stone you can have the wall beautiful deorated with plants growing against it, also creates way more privacy so it's a win-win situation and can become a great upgrade of the garden, and no peeping neigbours over the wall.

another creative idea

Of course the other side your wall will looks rough and very very ugly.

Agreed.

Taking the next post up in to account also if the Nieghbour claims the boundary is the path edge then it could be the complaint ants roof that over hangs and has to be chopped off! He could say he built the leaning wall and will replace it with a new wall on the actual boundary. Better to take preemptive action and let the other side decide what to do about the ugly unfinished surface looking at them. I still think he should calmly check the plans and have a chat about it but building a wall of his own sooner rather than later is definately a good idea

[Langsuan Man]

My understanding is the your roofs drip line must be within your boundary. You can't have a neighbours rain water falling off their roof into your property. Looking at the OPs picture I can't see how that buildings drip line is in their land.

First thing he needs to do is establish his boundarys with a chanote and marker pegs. You can get the Amphur to come out and confirm this for about B 3000. Then you can move forward. From the picture, the wall is already broken so you need to establish where your boundary is. An added bonus is when the Amphur is out checking it they can see what is going on but this takes a month to happen in Chiang Mai, I would be talking to as many poo Yai bans etc as I can and get them out. May cost a bottle of whiskey but at least it shows you mean business.

Depends on your location, some Amphur's will handle the re-survey but in others it is contracted out by the Land Office. Unfortunately in any case Thai law requires that the neighbor (the one effected by the re-survey) has to be notified prior to it being done. Wait time is also variable but can be sped up by paying an additional fee

[Jerry Cornelius]

My understanding is the your roofs drip line must be within your boundary. You can't have a neighbours rain water falling off their roof into your property. Looking at the OPs picture I can't see how that buildings drip line is in their land.

First thing he needs to do is establish his boundarys with a chanote and marker pegs. You can get the Amphur to come out and confirm this for about B 3000. Then you can move forward. From the picture, the wall is already broken so you need to establish where your boundary is. An added bonus is when the Amphur is out checking it they can see what is going on but this takes a month to happen in Chiang Mai, I would be talking to as many poo Yai bans etc as I can and get them out. May cost a bottle of whiskey but at least it shows you mean business.

Depends on your location, some Amphur's will handle the re-survey but in others it is contracted out by the Land Office. Unfortunately in any case Thai law requires that the neighbor (the one effected by the re-survey) has to be notified prior to it being done. Wait time is also variable but can be sped up by paying an additional fee

Depends on the land title you have. If a chanote, you can order a survey without the need for any other permissions ( unless access to a neighbors land is needed to effect the survey).

If a lesser title, you need the neighbors to agree to the survey.

Jerry