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I live in the Heritage and a new house is being built beside mine. It's clear that they are building this house a considerable ways towards the rear of the plot, although probably within the allowable limits. Still, this house goes much further back than any other on our street. We're not happy about this because it blocks our view to the golf course.
The other family whose house borders this new house is also furious. Their outdoor porch will be completely dominated by this new house, and now they'll get very little sunlight during the day......
I spoke to a lawyer today who implied there was little we can do, if the house is truly being built within guidelines.
So are we out of luck? Is there nothing we can do? Is the lesson here never to move into a house unless it's the last to be built on the block? Any creative ideas of how we can take action?
I don't think there is anything you can do. The owner of that property has the right to build whatever they want within the legal limits... same as you. You could build a big detatched porch that is set back further on your property, or expand your house. This is exactly why we are buying an existing home rather than building. I have a hard enough time deciding what I want when its already built. However, the 15 year old house I'm in the process of buying backs up to woods. For all I know, next week someone is going to start development on the woods behind the house and will bulldoze the whole thing and there goes my privacey and my nice wooded backdrop. That is an acceptable risk that I'm willing to take, based on the development that I see taking place in the area. I am pretty confident that if development ever happens, that they will keep plenty of woods as a barrier between the houses. If they don't, I won't be happy, but there isn't anything I can do about it other than buying the land behind me, since I don't own it. Perhaps you and your other neighbor could buy the house between you and change its design before it is completed... then sell the house after it is finished.
I totally understand because when I built a house in another state, there was an empty lot next to mine. I was miserable and there was nothing I could do about where they placed the house next door when it was constructed because they were within the limits of lot line requirements. It was so disappointing that I vowed NEVER to buy new construction again.
They placed their house as close to the property line next to mine as possible and as close to the front of the property as possible in order to accommodate a built-in pool in their back yard which they wanted specifically placed. That lleft the minimal number of feet between our homes and about 40 feet on the other side of their lot between homes. My beautiful view from my huge dining room window was changed from that of the trees and hill about a block down, to looking at a white wall of the side of their garage.
No new construction for me, ever again. Plus, the noise level, dirt, dust, construction traffic and nails in the roads don't stop for months and months in new subdivisions.
Wish there was something you could do but unfortunately I think you're out of luck if they're within their guidlines unless there's something in the HOA about not blocking the view. What a disappointment!
I too feel your pain. The house next to me was about a year old when we moved in to our brand new home and the thoughtless owners decided to build a very poorly designed screen porch (without HOA approval) with a very ugly siding fireplace. It was 11' from the property line but I guess it's up to code in Cary as long as it was 8' or more away from our property. My wooded view from our family room became a view of a very unattractive fireplace. Our problem is no where near as upsetting as yours, but I still get very aggravated when I think about how much better our view was.
This is why many people in established neighborhoods in Raleigh are fighting so hard for SOME type of restrictions on infill. A neighborhood will be long since built out, people adding on reasonable additions, etc. Then some developer comes in and builds a MASSIVE three story McMansion right up to the set back and takes all the light off the neighboring properties. The cut down all the trees on the lot to do it, so there is no shade, no screen, nothing. And people say "oh you people inside the beltline, you just want things the way they always were, stop complaining, we are adding to your property values....thats all that matters". We don't have problems with bigger nicer houses, just have SOME concern for how the size, placement and look of the house affects the neighbors and neighborhood.
It is nice to see it is not just ITB neighbors that understand this.
I understand that, to a large extent, people should be allowed to do what they want on their property, but there are some limits that should be established to make sure that you do not deteriorate your neighbors enjoyment of their property.
The problem is that this depends on people all having the same concern for the neighborhood. A lot of people are selfish and really don't care about anyone but themselves... and a lot of people are also just "real estate dumb" and don't understand how horrible something will look after its constructed. There used to be a website where the whole site was pictures and commentary of the stupid things that the neighbor of the site owner did to their house. It was absolutely hillarious how ridiculous some of the stuff was, and it was in a very nice fairly new neighborhood. It was kind of the "red neck meets suburban development" chronical.
I had the same experience the first time I read it. Imagine being that guy? I just posted it because I thought it would help the original poster feel better about his situation.
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