Equality and Human Rights Commission

You have a number of human rights that are relevant to housing and property:

• the right to own, and enjoy the ownership of, property
• the right to respect for your private life
• the right to respect for family life, and
• the right to respect for your home.

You also have the right not to be discriminated against in respect of any of these rights. If a public authority does discriminate against you by interfering with these rights, you may be able to bring a claim in the courts. See the section on human rights for more details.

You may also have private law rights, which can be used to prevent nuisances, such as excessively loud music at night. These rights are outside the scope of the Equality and Human Rights Commission.

Your local authority may be responsible for dealing with certain types of nuisance, such as noise nuisance. You should contact them first to find out how they can help you.

If you have a problem concerning your property, you could consider seeing one of the following:

• a solicitor
• a legal advice centre
• a citizens’ advice bureau
• your local authority.