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Neighbour & Boundary Disputes
Noise, overhanging trees, drainage onto your land, unapproved extensions, CCTV pointed at your door, pets and encroachment — the everyday disputes between neighbours in Malaysia, what the law actually says, and the order in which to escalate.
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| Blog Categories | Neighbour & Boundary Disputes |
|---|---|
| Content angle | Use this category before you knock on the door, and before you file anything. |
13 posts
Neighbour & Boundary Disputes
Extending a landed house: the approval most owners skip
Extending a landed house without local authority approval violates s.70(1) of Act 133. An unapproved extension does not stay secret—it surfaces at the next bank valuation, mortgage inspection, and sale transaction, exposing the owner to statutory demolition orders.
Neighbour & Boundary Disputes
Your neighbour built without approval
When a neighbour builds an unapproved extension, complaining to the wrong forum wastes critical time. Understand how local authorities enforce building control breaches under s.72 of Act 133, why the Homebuyer Tribunal has zero jurisdiction, and how to file an actionable complaint.
Neighbour & Boundary Disputes
The wall between two terrace houses: who owns it, who may build on it
The dividing wall between terrace houses is governed by both registered cadastral boundaries and common-law rights of support. Neither neighbour may unilaterally hack, overload, or alter a party wall without qualified submissions under Act 133.
Neighbour & Boundary Disputes
Rear extensions on a terrace house
Extending the rear of a terrace house is subject to state-adopted setback minimums and statutory drainage rules under Act 133. Building up to the back drain without approval risks municipal demolition under s.72 and severe civil liability for surface water flooding.
Neighbour & Boundary Disputes
Adding a second storey to a single-storey house
Adding a second storey to a single-storey terrace house is a structural engineering challenge before it is a budget decision. Original foundations were designed for one floor only, requiring structural submissions under s.70(2) of Act 133 to prevent catastrophic settlement.
Neighbour & Boundary Disputes
Planting in front of and behind a terrace house: whose land is that?
The green strip between your terrace house gate and the public road is almost always road reserve, not part of your private lot. Gardening it for decades creates zero legal ownership under the Torrens system, exposing owners to council clearance and civil liability under Act 133.
Neighbour & Boundary Disputes
The neighbour's tree is over your boundary
When a neighbour's tree branches encroach into your airspace, common law grants a right of abatement to prune back to the boundary. However, crossing the boundary is trespass, keeping fruit is theft, and killing the tree makes you liable in tort.
Neighbour & Boundary Disputes
A neighbour's tree damages your car or your roof
When a neighbour's tree falls on your car or roof, liability turns on whether the danger was foreseeable or an act of God. Prior dated written complaints are the decisive evidence in establishing actionable negligence under common law.
Neighbour & Boundary Disputes
A neighbour has taken part of your land
When a neighbour builds a fence, wall, or pillar across your boundary, verbal arguments achieve nothing. Boundary encroachment is settled by certified land surveyors and cadastral plans, requiring prompt formal notice to avoid compromising civil court remedies.
Neighbour & Boundary Disputes
Water and sewage flowing from the neighbour's land onto yours
Water and sewage flowing from a neighbour's landed property is a statutory municipal breach under Act 133 and an actionable civil nuisance. Raising ground levels and unapproved rear extensions are the usual culprits, triggering council intervention under s.70 and s.72.
Neighbour & Boundary Disputes
The five-foot way outside a shophouse is not yours to use
The covered five-foot way outside a shophouse is legally dedicated as a public thoroughfare, not private commercial storage. Obstructing it violates Act 133, exposing registered landlords to municipal demolition notices under s.72 and statutory fines under s.70(11).
Neighbour & Boundary Disputes
The neighbour's CCTV points straight at your house
When a neighbour's security camera points directly into your home, there is no simple Malaysian statute forcing it to move. Understand why police and tribunals cannot help, when local building control under Act 133 applies, and realistic remedies.
Neighbour & Boundary Disputes
The house next door has been cut into rented rooms
When a landed terrace house is converted into a high-density partitioned rooming house, complaints about 'too many tenants' are routinely ignored. The legally actionable route targets unapproved structural alterations and fire safety violations under s.70 and s.72 of Act 133.