Neighbor put up a privacy fence on my yard

[karinbelle]

Well, it' six inches in on one side - he's only over by a sliver on one side. His fence does not follow the property line. Here's why:

His contractor said they measured out for the fence, but the owner told them to square it up with the corner fence, and eyeball it to be in line with other fences a few houses down from him. Now, it's partly on our property, then takes an angle into his property.

On top of that, there's an easement back there of over seven feet where there is not supposed to be any fence.

When we talked to him about it, he kept saying it wasn't intentional (and he was defensive). We assured him we realized it wasn't intentional (just stupid - though we kept that to ourselves). He said we could hook up to his fence.

We would like to put up our own fence. We now have a privacy fence on his side, and a white picket on another side. We want to match the picket fence.

We have a similar easement of over seven feet for our property where there's not supposed to be any fences, trees, etc.

Should we:

1) hook in to his fence and ignore the easement ourselves? Our back yard would look like Picket, Privacy in back (with weird angles because he did not come out to his property line), Picket.

OR

2) Put up the picket across the side and back so that it is all picket. DH would have to mow the back seven feet.

I'm also worried that his fence being in on our property may cause us problems when we sell (not that we're thinking of doing that soon).

Should I call the homeowners association? The government agency that holds the easement? The property tax people? We are very sure of our boundaries because we had a staked survey and DH hammered rebar into the ground. We found it with a metal dector.

What do you think?

 

[sorcerormickey]

I think you need to get his fence off of your property. After a certain length of time, that property then becomes his.

 

[stopher1]

Well, it' six inches in on one side - he's only over by a sliver on one side. His fence does not follow the property line. Here's why:

His contractor said they measured out for the fence, but the owner told them to square it up with the corner fence, and eyeball it to be in line with other fences a few houses down from him. Now, it's partly on our property, then takes an angle into his property.

On top of that, there's an easement back there of over seven feet where there is not supposed to be any fence.

When we talked to him about it, he kept saying it wasn't intentional (and he was defensive). We assured him we realized it wasn't intentional (just stupid - though we kept that to ourselves). He said we could hook up to his fence.

We would like to put up our own fence. We now have a privacy fence on his side, and a white picket on another side. We want to match the picket fence.

We have a similar easement of over seven feet for our property where there's not supposed to be any fences, trees, etc.

Should we:

1) hook in to his fence and ignore the easement ourselves? Our back yard would look like Picket, Privacy in back (with weird angles because he did not come out to his property line), Picket.

OR

2) Put up the picket across the side and back so that it is all picket. DH would have to mow the back seven feet.

I'm also worried that his fence being in on our property may cause us problems when we sell (not that we're thinking of doing that soon).

Should I call the homeowners association? The government agency that holds the easement? The property tax people? We are very sure of our boundaries because we had a staked survey and DH hammered rebar into the ground. We found it with a metal dector.

What do you think?

I served our HOA as president for a couple of years - so be very careful before you act. You could be facing troubles on multiple fronts if you are rash about what you choose to do!

I would say to first broach the subject with your HOA. I say that because our's maintains very strict rules about the types of fencing that can be used, as well as heights. Our doesn't allow for mixed types - so having one part privacy and one part picket would be strictly forbidden in ours - but obviously I don't know about yours.

The easements have their own set of rules. We have a sewer easement at the back of our lot, and if we ever errect a fence, if we build it over the easement line , and there's a problem that arises and a hole needs to be dug - the city has the right to rip out the fence where they need to dig - and NOT replace it. With that in mind, I would recommend NOT building a fence across the easement line...just because your neighbor did it, doesn't make it right. AND, if ever there is some sort of an access issue and the fence has to come down - your neighbor will have to deal with it, not you.

As far as building the fence over the property line goes - yes, you could face an issue with that when it comes time to sell. There will be a problem with the title of the property, since another property holder's property flows over on to yours. In some states, if that goes unchecked, a "prescriptive" easement is automatically created, and the affected land reverts to the offending property owner - basically you lose that little bit of land from your total property - legally - with no payment for it.

Neighbor situations like this one can be tricky. Enlist the help of the HOA. They might be able to force him to redo the fence properly. Having a copy of the survey in hand can serve you well in this type of dispute.

 

[TwinmomPlusOne]

I agree with previous posters. You've already spoken to the neighbor, and he isn't going to have the fence moved, so it's time to take it next to the HOA. Don't let the issue lie, your property does become his if you just leave it alone. That can be a major issue when you want to sell in the future.

 

[daughtersrus]

We are required to get a permit before a fence can be installed. We have to bring a plat of survey to our village office along with detailed information as to the materials that will be used. If your village/HOA requires that, I would suggest that you follow the rules.

We also have an easement (20feet) on the back of our property. We're on a corner and we back up to a small semi-private airport (many people have planes in their backyards). At the time our subdivision was built, the airport property was unincorporated so all of the easement is on the side of the homes. We are able to put a fence up, but if the utilities need to access it (all of our utilities are underground), they have the right to remove it. Our fence is wood and DH screwed the sections in so it would be very easy to remove them if we need. It's been about 14 years now and only Comcast needed to get in when they were laying the fiber-optic line. DH was going to remove the sections but Comcast said that it wasn't necessary. They "punched" the line all the way across our yard instead of trenching. For them, it was probably easier since they didn't risk also digging up the electric and phone lines.

As for the fence being on your property, I would address that ASAP if not, that could lead to problems down the line. When we bought our first home, there was a chain-link fence. Part of our fence was over the property line by 6 inches in some places. Our attorney had to go over a very detailed survey and paperwork before closing. We had to sign many affidavits saying that we understood that we did not own the land where the fence encroached. When we went to sell, the buyer's lender was almost not going to approve the sale. I'm not sure if that's because they financed it FHA or not. It's much better to address the problem and correct it as soon as possible. Then of course, you'll have the problem of having several holes and concrete in your yard that will need to be removed and filled in.

Best of luck!

 

[tink_n_pooh]

Why can't people just play by the rules

I say take up with your HOA first, that is pretty much what they are there for (well at least part of it) - if that doesn't work contact the town and so on, sounds like your neighbor isn't going to budge

 

[unbroken chain]

You might 1st go back to the neighbor, and say in a nice way, that while you really don't care about the 6 inches, the problem is that if you want to sell, that tiny 6 inches could cause a lot of problems with buyers getting financing. Explain that of course if a bank won't lend a buyer money on your property because of the fence, that could be a real problem, so unfortunately, you are very sorry, but the fence needs to be correct. You agree it's ridiculous that the banks would make an issue of it, but they do. If he hems and haws and won't do anything, then I'd go to the HOA.

Once the fence is correct, I don't think the 7 feet affects you on his side. On your side, I would not fence in the 7 feet. The HOA could make you move it.

Here, our HOA inspects properties for compliance upon sale. Fences require pre-approval anyway, but if you do anything without approval, they will find out when you sell and make you change it.

 

[karinbelle]

You might 1st go back to the neighbor, and say in a nice way, that while you really don't care about the 6 inches, the problem is that if you want to sell, that tiny 6 inches could cause a lot of problems with buyers getting financing. Explain that of course if a bank won't lend a buyer money on your property because of the fence, that could be a real problem, so unfortunately, you are very sorry, but the fence needs to be correct. You agree it's ridiculous that the banks would make an issue of it, but they do. If he hems and haws and won't do anything, then I'd go to the HOA.

Once the fence is correct, I don't think the 7 feet affects you on his side. On your side, I would not fence in the 7 feet. The HOA could make you move it.

Here, our HOA inspects properties for compliance upon sale. Fences require pre-approval anyway, but if you do anything without approval, they will find out when you sell and make you change it.

You are very diplomatic!

I've contacted the HOA and have been as matter-of-fact as I can be. I mentioned the problem with selling, and I hope this is enough to get him to move the fence off my property.

I agree that his being on the easement only affects his property.

We're going to put up our fence properly. I've also requested approval from the HOA for that.

I'll update when I know more.

Thank you, everyone, for the great advice. I hate conflict and was tempted to ignore the situation, but this does have to be done to protect my interests.

 

[Adi12982]

I personally would NOT build over or close off the easement.

 

[cats mom]

You are very diplomatic!

I've contacted the HOA and have been as matter-of-fact as I can be. I mentioned the problem with selling, and I hope this is enough to get him to move the fence off my property.

I agree that his being on the easement only affects his property.

We're going to put up our fence properly. I've also requested approval from the HOA for that.

I'll update when I know more.

Thank you, everyone, for the great advice. I hate conflict and was tempted to ignore the situation, but this does have to be done to protect my interests.

Sounds like a good plan to me. Those HOA's can be very persuasive when they want to be.

I agree that you really need to take care of the property line issue now. Unfortunately when it comes to legal paperwork it doesn't matter if it's 6 inches or 6 feet... same amount of hassle involved.

FWIW,
I know every situation is different; but we once owned a home with an easement that had a clause stating if no request for access had been made within a certain time frame (I think it was somewhere between 10 - 15 years) then all rights reverted back to the property owner. Lots of folks on our street had moved their fences back.

Of course I have no idea what the terms of your easement are, just throwing it out there.

Good Luck!

 

[melcan]

Contact the HOA. I would be willing to bet, building on a neighbors property IS against the covenants.

 

[DVC Sadie]

If the HOA doesn't intervene ASAP then I would send a certified letter stating that you will hire a company to tear down the fence at their expense.

1. If you go this route you must be sure of the property lines. I would re survey to make sure I was right.
2.Be prepared to put up your fence ASAP.
3. Know that you will have a neighbor that is an enemy for as long as either of you live in the same neighborhood.

If you approve the encroachment then after a certain amount of time all the property inside of the fence will be owned by the neighbor.

 

[garydeb]

We had a problem with our neighbor's fence on our property when we tried to buy our house. We could not get the loan on the house until the fence was moved and we showed pictures that it was moved. I would get him to move it now because you don't want any problems in the future. This could also cause problems if you every want refiance and they come and inspect you property.

Just my 2cents,
Debbie

 

[JR6ooo4]

I think you need to get his fence off of your property. After a certain length of time, that property then becomes his.

As far as building the fence over the property line goes - yes, you could face an issue with that when it comes time to sell. There will be a problem with the title of the property, since another property holder's property flows over on to yours. In some states, if that goes unchecked, a "prescriptive" easement is automatically created, and the affected land reverts to the offending property owner - basically you lose that little bit of land from your total property - legally - with no payment for it.

I agree with previous posters. You've already spoken to the neighbor, and he isn't going to have the fence moved, so it's time to take it next to the HOA. Don't let the issue lie, your property does become his if you just leave it alone. That can be a major issue when you want to sell in the future.

If the HOA doesn't intervene ASAP then I would send a certified letter stating that you will hire a company to tear down the fence at their expense.

1. If you go this route you must be sure of the property lines. I would re survey to make sure I was right.
2.Be prepared to put up your fence ASAP.
3. Know that you will have a neighbor that is an enemy for as long as either of you live in the same neighborhood.

If you approve the encroachment then after a certain amount of time all the property inside of the fence will be owned by the neighbor.

I have been a land surveyor for over 25 years, in Illinois, and have yet to hear of a successful case of adverse possession.

the land reverts to the neighbor??? how can it revert if the neighbor never owned it? An easement is rights granted or taken, not ownership.

I suggest contacting a professional for legal land issues in your area for more accurate answers.

Mikeeee

 

[JR6ooo4]

in illinois:

Time Period Required for Occupation
20 yrs.and Color of Title:
which means a title company would have to insure the encroachment area, which is not going to happen with a brand new fence.

7 yrs. and Payment of Taxes:
which means the assesor has to recongnize the tiny little encroachment and change the tax assesment to reflect that.

both are highly unlikely. But to cover your but, send a certified letter acknowledging you know the fence is on your property. any rights the neighbor might gain from not moving the fence are extinguished.

Mikeeee

 

[corndog]

For adverse possession, the neighbor also has to believe he owns the property. Here the OP said the neighbor knows it's an encroachment. Usually I direct people to the Budget Board if they wish to receive erroneous legal advice.

Our neighbor has 2 different fences a few feet into our property. They know it's our property so I don't care about any adverse possession issues. They maintain the fences and they look nice. I'm down with it.

 

[corndog]

Who holds the easement/what's it for?

 

[barkley]

as for the easement-i would realy look at what it entails and how extensive it is because you hoa may not be entirely knowledgeable about it (despite what they say). we own property that our hoa (and fellow homeowners) have easements to for a variety of reasons, however, when we were purchasing the property and received all of the title search documents we learned of ALL the easements that existed long before our community and the hoa existed. the hoa was granted and is knowledgable of what they perceive as their rights to easement, what they may or may not be aware of are that their easements take secondary place to pre-existing easements by the county dating back many decades. i would check in your original title documents and rely on that before you rely on any word of mouth from the hoa.

 

[aprilgail2]

I keep seeing the term easement on here and have never heard it before and I have no clue what it is!!

 

[manning]

An easment is usually granted to utilities. We have a fifteen foot one on our property. It gives them the right to lay cables or overhead wires, etc.. You cannot stop or block them from doing so. You may build a fence but if it interferes with them the utility has the right to tear it down without having to pay you. They may even charge you for tearing it down.