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Property Doctors 01 February 2019 7:00am GMT EVERY WEEK, THE TELEGRAPH’S PROPERTY DOCTORS BRING EXPERTISE ON RENOVATIONS AND DIY, INTERIORS, BUYING AND SELLING, LETTINGS, LEGAL ISSUES AND

TAXES – ADDRESSING THREE TOPICS. SEND YOUR QUESTIONS TO 
[email protected] LEGAL ISSUES Q MY SON’S HOUSE AND GARDEN ADJOINS A RECREATION GROUND OWNED BY THE LOCAL AUTHORITY,

WHICH INCORPORATES A RUNNING TRACK AND SPORTS FACILITIES. SEVEN YEARS AGO, MY SON GOT A PUPPY, WHO MANAGED TO FIND HIS WAY OUT OF THE GARDEN, THROUGH A NOT-VERY-WELL-MAINTAINED FENCE AND

AWAY THROUGH THE RUNNING TRACK. WE ESTABLISHED THAT THE FENCE WAS THE RESPONSIBILITY OF THE LOCAL AUTHORITY AND WE MADE A COMPLAINT TO THEM ABOUT THE CONDITION OF THE FENCE. THE RESULT WAS

QUITE PROMPT, AND A NEW ONE WAS ERECTED 4FT INTO THE AREA OF THE COUNCIL LAND. IT WAS A SUBSTANTIAL CONSTRUCTION WITH STEEL POSTS, A VERY PERMANENT STRUCTURE. THIS NEW FENCE CREATED A STRIP

OF LAND THAT CONTAINED SOME LARGE TREES AND NOW, SEVEN YEARS SINCE THE FENCE WAS ERECTED, THEY NEED SOME TREE SURGERY, AS THEY SUBSTANTIALLY OVERHANG HIS HOUSE, GARAGE AND GARDEN. OUR

DILEMMA IS: DO WE ASSUME THIS STRIP OF LAND IS NOW MY SON’S RESPONSIBILITY AND THE COST OF THE TREE WORK IS DOWN TO HIM, OR DO WE CONTACT THE LOCAL AUTHORITY AND ASK THEM TO CARRY OUT THE

TREE WORK? IF THIS LAND IS SEEN TO NO LONGER BE THE RESPONSIBILITY OF THE LOCAL AUTHORITY, DOES MY SON HAVE A CLAIM OF OWNERSHIP? _JE, Surrey
_ A It is often very difficult to know where the

boundary between two properties lies. The Land Registry operates the “general boundaries rule”, which means you cannot simply look at the title plans that they have for each property. The

location of the boundary is usually determined by physical features, such as the old fence you mention. If it is quite clear that the old fence was nearer to your son’s house than the new

one, then the fact that a new one has been erected by the council does not mean that the title to the land is transferred to your son. It therefore follows that the land still belongs to the

council, and you should contact it about the trees. However, if it refuses to do anything about them then your son is certainly within his rights to cut back the branches that overhang his

property. Given that these branches are technically “trespassing”, then the council ought to be liable for the cost. It will probably not be cost-effective to bring a court action against

the council if it refuses to pay the cost, but it may be worthwhile going through its complaints procedure and ultimately bringing a claim to the Local Government Ombudsman. TAXES Q MY WIFE

AND HER SISTER ARE SELLING THEIR PROPERTY TO THEIR BROTHER FOR £90,000 AND ARE SHARING THE PROCEEDS. MY WIFE HAS NO INCOME OTHER THAN THE MINIMUM OLD-AGE PENSION AND SO HAS NO TAX LIABILITY.

THE HOUSE WAS VALUED FOR PROBATE PURPOSES AT £40,000 IN 1993, AND INHERITED BY MYSELF AND MY WIFE’S BROTHER-IN-LAW AND WE TRANSFERRED THE PROPERTY TO THEM IN 2000. HOW MUCH CAPITAL GAINS

TAX (CGT) SHOULD SHE PAY? _CG, Yorkshire_ A Your wife will need to pay CGT on any gains she makes in excess of her annual exempt allowance of £11,700. Her CGT liability will be calculated by

taking her share of the selling price (£45,000 – or her share of the market value if the £90,000 price was not market value). She will then deduct from that £20,000, which is your share of

the cost at probate. She can also deduct any costs of selling the property, for example legal costs and also the costs of any improvements that have been made. Any gain that remains in

excess of her allowance of £11,700 will then be taxed at 18 per cent. LETTINGS Q I HAVE AN OLD, LISTED COTTAGE, WHICH IS LET OUT, WITH A STILL-VALID ENERGY PERFORMANCE CERTIFICATE (EPC). I

RECENTLY INSTALLED AN AIR SOURCE HEAT PUMP, ENERGY-EFFICIENT RADIATORS AND NEW BOILER, WHICH HAVE IMPACTED FAVOURABLY ON HEATING COSTS. OUT OF INTEREST, I GOT AN INSPECTOR TO COME, BUT WAS

PERTURBED TO FIND IT HAD SLIPPED INTO THE UNACCEPTABLE CATEGORY. HOW ARE THESE RATINGS CALCULATED? IS IT A CASE OF GETTING THE TEST ON A DAY WHEN YOU MIGHT GET A FAVOURABLE RESULT? _LT, by

email_ A Listed buildings are mostly exempt from these ratings, providing the building has been registered with the National PRS Exemptions Register. It is a complicated issue and I would

recommend you look online for further guidance. My understanding is that in January 2013 there was a qualified exemption for listed buildings, so they are not generally required to have an

EPC when sold or let, the reason being that in many cases a listed building would not reach grade E and the work required to meet this grade would “unacceptably alter it”. However, this is

where it gets complicated: I believe you need to commission an EPC and then object to the recommendations. Your best approach is to find an assessor familiar with listed building surveys. My

guess is that windows and wall construction will be the big issues, but the assessor should be able to explain the issues with your property. They may even be able to recommend other

improvements you may not have considered. I do commend you for taking on the measures you have. Installing an air source heat pump should really appeal to either a buyer or new tenants.

Renewable energy is now becoming a hot topic and both buyers and tenants take notice. Your property will retain its character with a hi-tech twist.