Validity of the building permit after the division of the property

Hello dear forum,

my future neighbor wants to build a carport (about 5.50m high). A corresponding building permit has been issued. After the building permit was granted, the property was divided and one half was sold to me. Now the carport is exactly on the property boundary. The problem is that although my construction project complies with the 3m distance to the boundary, floor-to-ceiling windows are installed on this side. That means I will only be looking at his concrete carport from a distance of three meters.

Question:
1. Is the building permit still valid? The property was divided, so shouldn't he obtain a new building permit?
2. Is he allowed to simply build a 5.5m carport on the property boundary without my permission?

Thank you very much and best regards!

I am not a lawyer, but legal advice would not be permissible here anyway. Building law is also not a trivial subject. Therefore, nothing can be said to you here about the individual case and the continuation of formal validity.

1. Is the building permit still valid? The property was divided, so now he would have to obtain a new building permit, right?

Basically, it might have to be re-examined whether his building project still complies with the permitted floor area ratio. The area of the property has been reduced in relation to his part due to the division, because the rest no longer counts.

2. Is he allowed to just build a 5.5 m carport on the property boundary without my permission?

As a rule, he is even allowed to build 12 m along your shared boundary without any distance, of which 9 m may be garage or carport.

As a neighbor, you do not have a right to a more decorative view than the border carport. Even if on that side there was your bathtub or reading chair window. Or your breakfast terrace. The carport may be on the boundary, even if there is an ugly car inside.

The problem is that my building project does comply with the 3 m distance to the boundary – however, floor-to-ceiling windows have been installed on this side. That means I will only be looking at his concrete carport from a distance of three meters.

If you had wanted more distance to his carport, you would have had to maintain this extra distance on your own property. Garages and similar ancillary buildings regularly enjoy a privilege to be built on the boundary.

Hello,
how much trouble is this topic worth to you, so to speak, among future neighbors?

If you are insensitive to that, ask this question at the building authority. They are also not allowed to provide legal advice, but they might be interested in the height of the garage...

The building laws, the foundation for permits, must still be complied with. There are rules for boundary construction, for example, a carport may only have a certain height. Since the basic conditions have now changed, the application would have to be submitted again. This is now my layman's addition of assumptions and does not replace legal advice.

Best regards, Yvonne

As already wrote, many facts can play a role in individual cases, e.g. existing building encumbrances, neighboring consents by previous owners, land register entries, development plan specifications, which would then have to be clarified by a specialist lawyer. In principle, a building permit only applies to the building plot described in the construction documents. There is even the opinion that a change in the cadastral designation alone leads to the invalidity of the building permit, also in the cases that frequently occur in practice, in which the building plot is shown in the officially certified site plan with planned boundaries and a provisional parcel number. The permissible boundary development is regulated by §6 HBO: (1) ... Distance areas are not required in front of exterior walls that are built on neighboring boundaries if, according to planning law regulations 1. the building has to be built on the boundary or 2. the building may be built on the boundary and it is legally secured that it is attached from the neighboring property. If, according to planning law regulations, it is not allowed to build on the neighboring boundary, but there is a building on the neighboring property on the boundary, it may be permitted or required that it be attached. If, according to planning law regulations, a building has to be built on the neighboring boundary, but there is a building on the neighboring property with a distance to this boundary, it may be permitted or required that a distance area be observed. ... (10) Without a distance area, immediately on or on adjoining neighboring boundaries, the following are permitted per building plot: 1. a garage ... The length of the boundary development for the facilities according to sentence 1 nos. 1 to 5 must not exceed a total of 15 m; roof overhangs are to be included. For the facilities according to sentence 1 nos. 1 to 4, the average wall height on the border side above the ground surface must not be higher than 3 m and the area of these walls on each neighboring boundary must not exceed 25 m2 in total. (11) Provisions of a development plan or another building planning or building regulations statute that bindingly determine the depth of the distance areas take precedence.

my building project complies with the 3m boundary distance - however, floor-to-ceiling windows are installed on this side.

Are you still planning or already living?

Suppose the permit were actually invalid. To what extent do you believe your situation would improve as a result? It can be assumed that a carport is approvable on the boundary. You might still argue about heights and lengths, but at the end of the day, you will be allowed to look out of your window at a carport that stands 3 meters away. Whether it is that much better to look at a hedge from 3 meters or at the neighbor’s wall or even into their house from 6 meters is questionable anyway. Ergo, in my opinion, this is not a building side suitable for floor-to-ceiling windows.