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Harmlessmischief

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  1. Hello, I was in a similar situation five years ago with a joint freeholder in a building with two flats. Without going into too much detail the other flat who are organizing the extension should pay for architect's drawings and a structural engineer's report for you before you consent. An extension should get approval from Southwark planning and you should be aware when the extension is happening (they usually take 3-6 months) you will be living on a building site with dust and noise. A party wall agreement will need to be prepared as they are likely to cut into walls you both share and could cause damage in your flat. Also, you should be aware that an extension may take away your right to access the back of the house and access to roof/window/brickwork. I think you said you are a joint freeholder, so you have the right to say no but that comes with consequences. The couple who wanted to do the extension five years ago, have been annoyed they couldn't extend and bullying me ever since, which has been really difficult since I live alone.
  2. Hi, I am not an au pair but my friends who moved to London from overseas, find the meetup website useful. The site has groups for au-pairs https://www.meetup.com/au-pairs-in-london/
  3. Hi Bing, thanks but my neighbours won?t put in soundproofing. They just expect me to have sleepless nights.
  4. Hey Goldilocks-I do agree that kids make noise and living in conversion flats can be noisy. I cant help thinking tho that if I had kids I would buy a house in a cheaper area, so the children had space to grow. The kids below me clearly dont have enough room and make noise because they are living in a cramped flat. I realise that not everyone can afford a house in East Dulwich but surrounding areas like Brockley and Honor Oak are cheaper for houses. On my street in the last few years, there seems to be an influx of couples who are squeezing kids into small flats and I struggle to understand what is the big attraction to East Dulwich. Is it because schools are better? Sorry if this is any way controversial but i have been wondering about this for a while. I have proposed mediation but not sure the couple are willing to pay for someone.
  5. Hi Castleton, We are joint freeholders. The lease says I should be able to enjoy my flat in peace but this has not been the case for last five years. I had hoped the couple would move but it looks like they are going to live in the flat long term until kids are teenagers. I live alone and they treat me like I have no rights. I have tried getting a solicitor to send a friendly letter reminding them of the lease but they don?t seem to follow the lease.
  6. Hi Kirsty Mac, as far as I know there is some sound proofing under floorboards. I dont have much money and the couple are not nice neighbours so I know they wont share the costs. Any additional sound proofing would be at my expense and the kids are not my responsibility, so I don't feel that I should pay more & have the inconvenience.
  7. Its interesting that you suggest loud music. I rarely invite friends around to my flat but I had a someone around before Christmas and we were playing some music in my living room. The man in the flat below pounded on my door around 11.30pm and demanded I turn off my music. My friend couldn't believe how he behaved to us playing about some music on a weekend nite...
  8. Hi, I live in a flat in East Dulwich in a converted house with a family of four underneath me. The kids are under 6 years and the noise is becoming overwhelming as the kids get older. I have been woken up most nights by screaming for the last five years and the family awake around 7am and make loads of noise screaching and shouting. I have tried moving my rooms around to not be above them at key times and I also wear ear plugs/noise cancellation headphones in the flat. I had a flatmate who moved out because the noise was so awful. I have proposed sound proofing but the family just ignore me when I raise the issue and I am not in a position to sell. I assume other people have to deal with noise levels from families in small flats and wondered what can be done. I realise that children make noise but they are not my kids and I don't want to be woken or disrupted by them. Any advice welcomed.
  9. Hey, I agree total with Sand12. I would be interested to see how Southwark services rank when they are benchmarked against other local councils. I think out local Councillors are not involved enough with the services the Council provide and don't want to engage with residents complaints. I realise that money is probably the issue but the NHS provides a great service despite funding cutbacks and extreme pressure due to pandemic. My key problem with Southwark Council is that staff are so rude & dismissive when you do eventually get through to them and this is annoying because our council tax pay their salaries. What I would like to happen is the following 1)More bins for dog mess and these bins regularly emptied 2)Planning Department start listening and acting on neighbours/residents concerns for building projects 3)Bulky waste don't keep the ?25 if you cancel two weeks in advance 4)Council staff do customer service training, have service agreements and receive positive and negative feedback from residents so they can improve I believe that the Council needs to be accountable for the service it provides and I am not sure it ever receives feedback from residents (I may be wrong though). I pay approx ?100 a month and surely that covers more than having bins emptied and for streets lights
  10. I suppose I was thinking that the Council should fine people more for allowing dogs to mess up the street. The responsibility is with the owner to clear up the mess but if more fines were handed out for non-compliance then this would be an incentive. I was also thinking bins for dog mess seem overflowing and their probably could be more bins for dog mess. Maybe
  11. Dear all, I am just trying to get some opinions about the services at Southwark Council. I lived in the area for 20 years and we all pay council tax every month for these services. I used to think the local services were good but in the last ten years I have noticed a decline and below are some examples 1) Bulky waste collection-used to be free but now its ?25 and if you need to cancel its non refundable. 2) Streets don't seem clean anymore and dog mess is everywhere 3) Planning Department will approve mostly any project and are dismissive to neighbours concerns 4) Impossible to talk a Council officer on the phone, as we are just put into queues and if you can get a response it is usually a dismissive and blunt email. Does anyone else have similar concerns? I have mentioned these problems to local councillors but no real changes made yet. I expect that Southwark has resource issues (perhaps around funding or staff) but I really think they could do better
  12. Hey all, due to ongoing problems with the leasehold flat I own which has a share of freehold, I am looking to recruit a managing agent to relieve me of my burden of having to deal with the other leaseholders. Its a depressing tale, where the other leaseholders have breached the lease and solicitors letters have been exchanged but nothing improves. I want a managing agent to take over the building and I expect the other leaseholders will object. So I believe that I need to apply to the court and a managing agent (who is approved by the court) makes decisions for us and decides what maintenance is needed and we pay monthly service charges to him/her to maintain the building. Hopefully it will cut out the squabbling over money and end the bad blood. Has anyone got a managing agent (who can act on behalf of the court)they could refer me to for a building with just two flats?
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