8-story development rising next to my property

A vacant lot adjacent to my property just had its plans approved to build an 8 story development. I’ve searched the forum for things I should be preparing for (e.g., getting on the developers insurance policy, taking pictures, obtaining an engineers report, etc.) before construction begins. Are there other things I should be considering?

I am also assuming they will need access to my property (i.e., scaffolding on my front and/or backyard). Am I able to charge them “rent”? If so, whats reasonable?

guikazoid

in General Discussion 6 years and 10 months ago

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burpgun | 6 years and 10 months ago

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Sorry to say you are most likely in for a lot of hassle and expenditures you may struggle to recoup depending on how ethical or not the property owners are. I’m not sure how connected you are to the developement site but they’ll be required to do pre construction surveys, and take steps to insure they don’t trash the buildings around their worksite. We’re winding up a miserable experience where the folks next door to us didn’t do any of that, damaged our property in ways it would have cost huge amounts of money to prove, and who threatened us with litigation. They were also all wrapped up in an LLC and the people we dealt with would never give their real names until it was time to sign documents, which was really sketchy. If these guys need any access to your property they’ll need a license agreement. Do not allow them to set one foot in your property without one. Depending on what it is, they’ll need to compensate you, even though in practice it will be hard to determine what “fair” is. You’ll probably have to front for lawyers fees, but they’ll have to cover that in t he end. Any agreement will cover insurance and should in theory leave you totally protected, even though in practice that’s hard to do. After all, if they decide to not follow the agreement, you’ll have to spend your money to sue them to bring them in line. Document everything. Take pictures constantly of their work. Report anything dangerous to 311.

slopefarm | 6 years and 10 months ago

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I would go ahead and engage a lawyer now, while you are not pressed for time. Get someone who frequently negotiates agreements on behalf of homeowners for developers to access the property. If the attorney is experienced in this area s/he will know what you need in the agreement in terms of indemnification, insurance, reasonable limits on access, and what the market will bear in terms of compensation for access. The attorney will also likely have recommendations for engineers, steps to take to protect yourself, and will probably have a good idea whether the developer has generally been a good or bad actor.

resident2 | 6 years and 10 months ago

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First find out who they are, how many developments have they done in the area? Check their records on prior developments; violations, stop work orders, etc.
LLC’s can all be opened to see who is behind them. If they are an LLC who shares an address with a million other LLC’s beware and get a construction litigation attorney to advise you.
If they are an LLC with an address that only houses their businesses, take a sigh of relief but still find an Attorney to represent you in any signed agreements.