Boundary/Neighbour Dispute

[Jaime]

It's been a few years since I posted on this forum as I have spent less and less time in HH but we've managed to maintain the bungalow we've owned in HH for the past 16 years & we still love it. We came back as a family at Christmas and kind of fell back in love with the place. We were certainly looking forward to coming back again once the current crisis is over.

Well, until today, that is, when we saw the photos a friend had sent us of what our new next door neighbour, who we have yet to meet, has built right on our boundary.

Essentially our house is on a quite large and stereotypical bungalow development of the early 2000s, with rows of near identical bungalows that have a path and boundary walls at the sides and rear and all of the small garden area at the front.

However, our new neighbour has constructed a two storey building the full depth of his front garden and within a couple of inches of the boundary, which is totally at odds with everything else but, more importantly to me, totally dominates and overshadows our bungalow garden. I haven't yet checked the rainwater arrangement but the roof falls to our side...!

It's hard to express how obscene this is in words and don't want to post the photos here.

I'm aware that a representative of the village community has already spoken to our neighbour and was basically met with a torrent of abuse.

I found this out a couple of hours ago and know I need to find out from the community committee what building restrictions, if any, there are/were for the village but I'm after any and all sensible advice and recommendations from members of this forum.

Thanks in advance,

Jaime

[VincentD]

I believe that under Thai property law, as long as there is a 50 cm. gap between the structure of the building and the property wall (boundary) you are allowed to build. Maybe you can get someone to check with the tessabahn as permission is typically needed. Also some gated villages may have further restrictions on building but rules are known to have been bent in the past.
Good luck.

[Dannie Boy]

I’d also agree with the advice from VincentD and see whether you get any joy from the Tessabahn and/or the village rules. Failing that (or as well as) a number of the law firms offer a first 30 minutes consultation free - I’d certainly do that too - there is one outside the Makro in Hua Hin that provides this service - good luck

[HHTel]

The rule is that you cannot build within 1 metre of your boundary, 2 metres (that may be 1.5 mtrs, not sure) if there is a window in the new construction. Overhanging a neighbours property is a no-no as is redirecting water onto an adjacent property such as runoff from a roof.
Sounds like quite a big build and unless it's built as a 'temporary' construction, then he would have needed planning permission (in Thailand it's a licence to build) plus a certificate on completion that it meets the criteria such as electricity etc. To get the initial 'licence to build', plans have to be submitted to the Tessabahn.

If these rules are not followed, the building is illegal and the Tessabahn can demolish the building and the person who built it will get a bill. In the past this has happened to swathes of property in Bangkok.

Why do I know this? Because when I built my house, I wanted to do it right.

Having said all that, Thais rarely abide by the rules.

[Nereus]

I'm aware that a representative of the village community has already spoken to our neighbour and was basically met with a torrent of abuse.

Sorry mate, that is the answer! A typical response from "me first". Who knows just who he is, whom he paid off to get a construction permit, and just whom he may have backing him up. Try a legal response by all means, but I guarantee it will go on for 10 years and you will either lose or be dead from the stress. The following is not a house but an example of what goes on here. It has been through the courts for years and is still standing:

https://www.bangkokpost.com/thailand/ge ... etas-hotel

If the construction had been stopped once it became apparent of what it was leading to, you MAY have had a chance. But now it is built your only option is to try and sell it. If you do want to try with a lawyer, be a bit careful just who you engage. Sorry, but the nice young lady at the mentioned Macro area is not experienced in cases like this.

[STEVE G]

Hi Jaime, sorry about this but as posted above, it's very hard to do anything about these matters. Thai law doesn't really have much application to protect you from these kind of situations, particularly outside of city limits.
To be honest, the reason that many of us have been able to afford reasonably priced property in Thailand is because there are non of these types of laws to stop you building on agricultural land like there is in the west. The downside is your situation.
It's something that has worried me because I've always known that there was nothing to stop someone building a large house overlooking my garden. I'm lucky in that although a two storey house was built last year, it's far enough away from the boundary to hide with tree growth, clearly yours is not.

[Dannie Boy]

I would still make some investigations but just avoid spending more than a token amount and see where that gets you.

If you draw a blank, you won’t have lost anything material but will at least have the “satisfaction” that you tried - just be aware as others have posted, you may get absolutely nowhere, but if you do nothing, you’ll always be wondering what might have happened?


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[Robinhood]

Could the torrent of abuse be due to the neighbor knowing corners were cut and feeling vulnerable? As said previously, start to make inquiries without breaking cover or spending big money and you could find yourself with a few cards to play.

[dtaai-maai]

What nationality is your neighbour? This might be easier to deal with if he is not Thai.

[Jaime]

Thank you all very much for taking the time to respond.

My wife's initial reaction was to say "Let's sell" but the reality is that the impact of this construction on our property is so extreme that I just don't think we could sell it at all - certainly not to a discerning foreigner anyway. I certainly wouldn't buy it unless it was maybe half what we would have otherwise expected for it.

However, again, I'm grateful for all your thoughts on this, because all the posts above have been helpful in some way. If nothing else just to help me get my head around this by getting it off my chest. The information on boundary distances gives me hope because the building is right up against the boundary and Danny Boy and Robinhood have probably summed up the way I feel about this in that basically I at least want to explore what avenues are open to me and then take a view, rather than simply shrugging my shoulders and saying TIT.

However, I've been coming to Thailand long enough to know that my chances of resolving this to my satisfaction are slim and like Nereus we wonder exactly who this guy is - Thai, a bit of money (cash at least), loud and aggressive. It doesn't bode well.

I'm not in Thailand atm and with travel restrictions in place we're unlikely to be there for a long time - which is part of the frutration but if anyone has any recommendations for legal assistance I'd be grateful.

I'm feeling absolutely gutted at the moment - it was a really lovely place to be.

[brianks]

After reading all of this I am so thankful that I just recently purchased the land on both sides of my housing plot. The principal reason I did so was to prevent anyone from making life miserable for us in the future. Lesson learned.

[migrant]

If financial considerations weren't there it would be a nice gesture to donate the house to a local rock and roll band or Karaoke school.

[barrys]

I don't know exactly what the rules are in Thailand, but here in Cambodia, wheen you want to build you have to present a document to the land office signed by all the owners of adjacent properties that they do not object to the development. Is there any such provision in Thailand, which may possibly have been ignored?

[HHTel]

That's similar to getting planning permission in the UK I think. Once you apply for planning permission there is a period of time to allow objections.

When I was building my house here, we had to submit plans to the Tessabahn to obtain the building licence (Permission to Build). I'm not sure what their criteria is for approving the build but I'm pretty sure it doesn't involve neighbours.

[malcolminthemiddle]

Projects of 10 + houses after July 2000 must be licensed.

Licenses are issued by the Provincial Land Department. All licensed projects are governed by the Land Development Act B.E 2543 (2000).

The license details and approves the number and type of houses.

Employ a lawyer to first check if your project is licensed. Check also whether there is a Developed Estate Juristic Entity and a set of estate rules and regulations both registered with the Land Department. If there is, your neighbour’s construction likely represents an unauthorised change that can be challenged. Preferably, the challenge should be made by the Juristic Person (assuming there is one) on behalf of all the Owners.

Your lawyer will advise.

Hope this helps.