Buying land: be interested in what’s beyond its borders

Chapters of the article

• Connection to utility networks
• Access road
• Setback from neighbouring house
• Setback from property boundaries
• Setback from road
• Neighbour’s plans for development do not appeal to me
• Parking minimums

The conditions under which it is possible to build on a given area are set out in the General Building Act, the Ordinance on General Requirements for the Use of Territory and the zoning plan. All residential buildings, family holiday homes and accommodation facilities (such as hotels or guest houses) must comply with these regulations. So if you want to build a house, you must not forget them.

Connection to utility networks

One of the key factors for locating a building on a plot of land is the connection to public utilities. Without a properly designed connection to these networks, you will not be granted planning permission. This includes connections to water, sewerage, gas and electricity. So if you are buying land, you should check the possibilities of connecting to the networks. Ideally you should have access to the networks right on the boundary of the plot. If the public utilities are more than 50 metres away, you will need to establish new access, which can make building significantly more expensive. Another complication can arise if the networks end at a neighbour’s property, for example. Then an easement would need to be negotiated.

On the other hand, it may happen that the networks are located nearby but end in front of a class I or II road that runs past your property. This can also be a big problem, as these roads cannot be dug up or undermined as you wish.

Access road

Your new building should also be connected to the public road network. It is assumed that you want to be able to get to your house by car or taxi, to allow the arrival of not only your friends, but especially the delivery driver, the fire brigade or the health service in case of emergency.

Also for these cases it is necessary to deal with the surrounding land and if yours does not yet have an entrance, then to provide one.

Here again, it may be that the only possible access is through a neighbour’s property. In such a case, it is necessary to agree with the neighbour on the establishment of an easement and if no agreement is possible, then everything can be resolved through the court. However, the right to establish an easement is not guaranteed by law.

It is important to meet engineering standards to establish a new access road. You must consult with the traffic inspectorate before submitting the project to the building authority for approval.

Setback from the neighbouring house

When building a house, it is crucial to follow the rule that neither the house nor any part of it must encroach on the neighbouring property. You must also not restrict the ability to build on the neighbouring property. Buildings must comply with various distance criteria, e.g. in terms of hygiene standards, environmental protection, fire safety, lighting and access to sunlight, maintenance of buildings and use of the space between them, etc.

Separate houses should be spaced at least 7 metres apart, which in practice can be quite restrictive and historic houses could not be rebuilt in this way. Where space is limited the distance can be reduced to 4 metres. However, here the condition that there are no windows to living rooms in the opposite walls must be met. Therefore, if there is no window on the wall in question, or if it only leads to a corridor, there should be no major problem with the construction. However, you must still obtain an exemption.

The actual distance of buildings is measured from external walls, balconies and terraces, and does not take into account, for example, the distance of the roof covering from the neighbouring property.

Distance from property boundaries

Legislation states that youshould place yourbuilding at least 2 metres from the property boundary. Again, you can make an exception and place your house or garage, which is connected to the use of the house, right on the boundary of the property. However, in this case there must be no openings in the wall, i.e. no windows or doors. Historically, however, there was no such boundary and houses stood directly on the line of the street. At the same time, it should be stressed that even if this condition is met, there is no entitlement to obtain an exemption. First of all, it will depend on whose property is on the other side of the boundary, whether there is also a building located there and, above all, whether the neighbour agrees to the exemption.

Setback from the road

You must also keep a minimum distance of at least three metres from the edge of the carriageway of the road or local road. Exceptions are made for buildings located in the gaps of terraced housing.

I don’t like the neighbour’s plans for the development

But what if you yourself have met all the technical and legal requirements but your neighbour is ignoring them? Is he planning to “stick” his house on the very boundaries of the plot and place the windows towards you? First of all, you can rest assured that the building authority itself will not allow such a construction in violation of the regulations. Moreover, when the neighbour applies for the location of the building, you are a party to the proceedings. You can object to the plan to the extent that your right is affected. This may relate, for example, to the size of the building, shading, possible immissions, etc.

The building authority will evaluate these objections and make a decision based on them. If they are not accepted or not taken into account, you can appeal as an affected person. If the building authority has forgotten to include you as a party to the proceedings, you should take legal action against the planned location of the building to protect your neighbouring rights.

If the neighbour goes ahead with the construction despite the prohibition (or non-permission), it will be an unauthorised or black building, which you can report.

The relevant procedure concerning unauthorised construction falls entirely within the competence of the competent building authority. Therefore, if the building authority finds that the construction is being carried out without the relevant permit, it must ex officio initiate proceedings for the removal of the construction.

Parking minima

Parking minimums are set by building standards that determine how many parking spaces a builder must construct when constructing a certain type of building. Opinions on them vary widely: From requiring that each medium-sized dwelling be entitled to two parking spaces to the complete abolition of these standards. Current building codes in Prague require roughly one parking space to be provided for every 80-foot apartment. The numbers, or coefficients, may vary in specific locations. Typically in the centre of Prague (if new flats are built there), the requirement drops significantly, but on the outskirts of Prague it rises to 1.4 times. These coefficients can also significantly affect the quality of housing. However, this is assessed and understood differently by each of us. While for one person, quality housing is the possibility to park two family cars without having to drive around the local roads for a quarter of an hour, another prefers public transport and a playground for children close to the house.