tcm
...
I thought i would update you with the ongoing story of me buying a house in order to knock it down and build a nicer house in your borough, but then (once i had bought it) your planning dept saying that the existing house was too nice.
Personally, and also in the view of everyone else in the road, i think the existing house is a bit ghastly, especiallly since the judgement of niceness was made in June lastyear when all the honeysuckle and such was tumbling over the house. Since then i have cut it all down, and reason for the wisteria etc is quite clear - the house is actualy horrid.
Nonetheless, i have launched a planning appeal. I belive that this may also be in the process of being refused too, but am not sure.
Meanwhile, and more recently, from another department of the council came a leter which advised that there would now be a full charge for council tax, even for empty houses. This seem a bit rich, seeing as how it is another gang in the same council that are preventing me from revdevelopment. Also, an empty house can't be full of people using council services now can it?
Anyway, I noted on the council tax letter that there were exemptions, one of them being that if the house was not a legal dwelling then no council tax applies. A legal dwelling needs a sink and toilet. So, last thursday i bought a wrecking bar from B Q £6.75 plus saftey goggles smashed the window (i can't find the keys to the house any more not having been there for a year) and set about destroying all the sinks and loos. This would have the side benefit of making the house unattractive to squatters too.
There was a little bit of water coming out of the taps, presumably from a full hot water tank. All the gas and electric is off, and i belive that the water had also been cut off too. However, 30 minutes later, having smashed all the sinks and bogs, it became clear that the water was not turned off, and the bedrooms began to fill up with water. I couldn't find the stop cock, and was a bit worried about how the water would affect the electrics which are turned off but you never know, so i got in the car and drove off.
Two days later my wife passed by the house and there are large damp patches all around the ouside of the house. I will be going over to check the situation, and would imagine that the ceilings may have fallen in. I will also be advising the water board, who had said that they would be cutting off the water, but evidently hadn't. I wouldn't have thought that the house could completely fil with water as there's a cat flap, but I'm not sure.
All this is a result of your planning dept that slapped down any development, and your coucil tax department that invented a sily new rule, designed to encourage anyone with an empty house to smash in the loos and bogs rather than stump up £2k per year for nothing at all. The very unfortunate result is that the house (which is crap, but your lot thought was nice) will soon fall over and/or slither down the hill. Eventually, you might relent and let me redevelop. But the kids like living elsewhere. So, this means that when we eventually do put a house up it will be a bit quick and dirty, rather than carefully carefully dream house. You could have talked to me about the original plans, couldn'tcha, hm?
The current situation is therefore that you get no council tax, and the place is a right mess. I don't mind too much, as i don't live in the area - it's turning into a bit of a derelict slum area, see. So, if you DO eventualy give me planning permission, i might not do any developement unless you give me a large grant.
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Personally, and also in the view of everyone else in the road, i think the existing house is a bit ghastly, especiallly since the judgement of niceness was made in June lastyear when all the honeysuckle and such was tumbling over the house. Since then i have cut it all down, and reason for the wisteria etc is quite clear - the house is actualy horrid.
Nonetheless, i have launched a planning appeal. I belive that this may also be in the process of being refused too, but am not sure.
Meanwhile, and more recently, from another department of the council came a leter which advised that there would now be a full charge for council tax, even for empty houses. This seem a bit rich, seeing as how it is another gang in the same council that are preventing me from revdevelopment. Also, an empty house can't be full of people using council services now can it?
Anyway, I noted on the council tax letter that there were exemptions, one of them being that if the house was not a legal dwelling then no council tax applies. A legal dwelling needs a sink and toilet. So, last thursday i bought a wrecking bar from B Q £6.75 plus saftey goggles smashed the window (i can't find the keys to the house any more not having been there for a year) and set about destroying all the sinks and loos. This would have the side benefit of making the house unattractive to squatters too.
There was a little bit of water coming out of the taps, presumably from a full hot water tank. All the gas and electric is off, and i belive that the water had also been cut off too. However, 30 minutes later, having smashed all the sinks and bogs, it became clear that the water was not turned off, and the bedrooms began to fill up with water. I couldn't find the stop cock, and was a bit worried about how the water would affect the electrics which are turned off but you never know, so i got in the car and drove off.
Two days later my wife passed by the house and there are large damp patches all around the ouside of the house. I will be going over to check the situation, and would imagine that the ceilings may have fallen in. I will also be advising the water board, who had said that they would be cutting off the water, but evidently hadn't. I wouldn't have thought that the house could completely fil with water as there's a cat flap, but I'm not sure.
All this is a result of your planning dept that slapped down any development, and your coucil tax department that invented a sily new rule, designed to encourage anyone with an empty house to smash in the loos and bogs rather than stump up £2k per year for nothing at all. The very unfortunate result is that the house (which is crap, but your lot thought was nice) will soon fall over and/or slither down the hill. Eventually, you might relent and let me redevelop. But the kids like living elsewhere. So, this means that when we eventually do put a house up it will be a bit quick and dirty, rather than carefully carefully dream house. You could have talked to me about the original plans, couldn'tcha, hm?
The current situation is therefore that you get no council tax, and the place is a right mess. I don't mind too much, as i don't live in the area - it's turning into a bit of a derelict slum area, see. So, if you DO eventualy give me planning permission, i might not do any developement unless you give me a large grant.
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