A group of neighbours have been left furious after a ‘monstrous’ back garden shed was built by a nearby resident.
Two homeowners are considering selling up and move away from the development in Thurmaston, Leicestershire that they claim will block their sunlight and infringe on their privacy.
It all started when Gurnam Singh, 40, was given the green light to build extensions to his garden shed and semi-detached house.
However, neighbours were left shocked after the 13ft high ‘eyesore’ in Singh’s back garden was given planning permission.
Plans for the property were approved last year
Charnwood Borough Council
One of the homeowners, a mother of three who asked not to be named, told MailOnline they would be selling up, saying: “I feel I’m being driven out because of it. I blame the owners, I blame the council. The development is a disgrace and should never have been allowed, full stop.
“I have lived here 25 years and now I’m going to sell up, if I can get anyone to buy the place now. The planning authority didn’t even bother telling me and others that is had been approved. If I wanted to live in a built up area I would have bought a house in the city.
“‘I have met [Singh] at the property to raise my objections and he’s always been polite but at the end of the day he’s got what he wants and some of us don’t like it but the council has allowed it.
“It looks into my back bedroom windows and affects my privacy. They knocked down a flat roof garage structure to build a single storey garden structure with a pitched roof. The wall is right up against my fence so it’s no wonder I am annoyed.”
LATEST NEIGHBOUR ROWS
The new developments for the Thurmaston property has split opinion
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One neighbour told MailOnline: “It it a complete eyesore and it has devalued my house. Even the parish council objected and couldn’t believe it got through.”
However, Singh, a father-of-two who runs building firm Construction5 Ltd, has defended the construction, saying he and his wife have faced issues with the planning.
He said: “I don’t know why there is a problem with some people. We have done everything right and nothing wrong. We are paying a mortgage for that house and rent on another property to live in, and it is a struggle.
“We have been given permission for a garden extension, boundary to boundary, but we have left a gap. It will be a gym and leisure room and garden storage, and we are building a bigger house but not too big.”
His wife Ranjir Kaur added: “W are trying to get a house built, and we want to finish the works and move in s a family. Is that too much to ask? At the moment with the cost of living crisis we are losing out, paying more and more rent because of neighbours’ complaints which are holding us back they may be using this an ammunition.”
A spokesperson for the planning authority, Charnwood Borough Council, said they were “unable to comment on individual applications.”
However, their report approving the plans said: “The proposed development complies with the relevant development plan policies. It would not result in any harm to neighbouring amenity.
“It would not result in any detrimental visual harm to the character and appearance of the host dwelling, street scene or surrounding area. It would not result in harm to highway safety.”
HOUSE prices increased by 1.8 per cent in Dudley in December, latest figures show.
The rise contributes to the longer-term trend, which has seen property prices in the area grow by 2.2 per cent over the last year.
The average Dudley house price in December was £238,941, Land Registry figures show – a 1.8 per cent increase on November.
Over the month, the picture was different to that across West Midlands, where prices increased 2.6 per cent, but Dudley was above the 0.1 per cent rise for the UK as a whole.
Over the last year, the average sale price of property in Dudley rose by £5,200 – putting the area sixth among West Midlands’s 30 local authorities with price data for annual growth.
First-time buyers in Dudley spent an average of £209,400 on their property – £4,100 more than a year ago, and £56,300 more than in December 2018.
Former owner-occupiers paid £265,100 on average in December – 26.6 per cent more than first-time buyers.
Owners of semi-detached houses saw the biggest rise in property prices in Dudley in December – they increased 2.1 per cent, to £238,875 on average. Over the last year, prices rose by three per cent.
Among other types of property:
Detached: up 1.7 per cent monthly; up 2.7 per cent annually; £366,378 average
Terraced: up 1.5 per cent monthly; up 1.2 per cent annually; £196,130 average
Flats: up 1.8 per cent monthly; up 0.3 per cent annually; £126,319 average
Buyers paid 5.4 per cent less than the average price in West Midlands (£253,000) in December for a property in Dudley. Across West Midlands, property prices are lower than across the UK, where the average cost is £285,000.
The most expensive properties in West Midlands were in Warwick – £383,000 on average, and 1.6 times the price as in Dudley. Homes in Stoke (£134,000 average) were at the other end of the scale.
HOUSE prices dropped by 1.2 per cent in Dudley in November, new figures show.
The drop contributes to the longer-term trend, which has seen property prices in the area suffer a 0.8 per cent annual decline.
The average Dudley house price in November was £232,156, Land Registry figures show – a 1.2 per cent decrease on October.
Over the month, the picture was different to that across West Midlands, where prices decreased 3.1 per cent, but Dudley was lower than the 0.8 per cent drop for the UK as a whole.
Over the last year, the average sale price of property in Dudley fell by £1,900 – putting the area 14th among West Midlands’s 30 local authorities with price data for annual growth.
The highest annual growth in the region was in Wychavon, where property prices increased on average by six per cent, to £369,000. At the other end of the scale, properties in South Staffordshire lost 8.6 per cent of their value, giving an average price of £276,000.
First-time buyers in Dudley spent an average of £203,200 on their property – £2,300 less than a year ago, but £49,800 more than in November 2018.
By comparison, former owner-occupiers paid £258,000 on average in November – 27 per cent more than first-time buyers.
Owners of terraced houses saw the biggest fall in property prices in Dudley in November – they dropped 1.6 per cent in price, to £190,995 on average. Over the last year, prices dropped by 1.6 per cent.
Detached properties were down 0.8 per cent monthly; up 0.1 per cent annually; and priced £357,624 on average.
Semi-detached homes were down 1.3 per cent monthly; down 0.5 per cent annually; and were priced £231,165 on average.
While flats were down 0.7 per cent monthly; down 2.1 per cent annually; and they cost £122,968 on average.
Buyers paid 4.7 per cent less than the average price in West Midlands (£244,000) in November for a property in Dudley. Across West Midlands, property prices are lower than those across the UK, where the average cost is £285,000.
The most expensive properties in West Midlands were in Stratford-on-Avon – £410,000 on average, and 1.8 times the price as in Dudley. Stratford-on-Avon properties cost 2.9 times the price as homes in Stoke (£139,000 average), at the other end of the scale.
The highest property prices across the UK were in Kensington and Chelsea.