How to deal with neighbors that encroach on your property
Filed under: Home
You've finally bought a little patch of Mother Earth that you can call your own. Then you discover your neighbor is encroaching. Perhaps his fence is two feet over the property line, or the dying limb of his sugar maple is overhanging your garage, or his barking dog is keeping you up all night. How can you deal with such encroachments?
First, let's clarify a couple of terms. An easement is a right of access that has been agreed-upon by the property owner, in writing, or mandated by a government decision. Perhaps the first owner of your house granted your neighbor access to a dock on your property in perpetuity, or the city has retained an easement to access power lines that run across the back border of your property. If the easement is recorded, you don't have much recourse.
An encroachment is tresspass without permission, and you can do something about it. If your neighbor has taken a few feet of your land when building his fence, you can take steps to take back your land. A caveat, however; make sure you know where your true property boundaries are. For example: the back edge of my property is fenced, and the fence has a four-foot jog where two abutting properties meet. When I moved in, my neighbor told me that one of those landowners had moved his fence to take four feet of my land before I moved in, and I intended to require him to move it back. To my chagrin, when the property was surveyed, I found that the previous owner of my house had, in fact, taken four feet of my neighbor's property.
If you are confident about the borders of your property, you could approach your neighbor and politely request that he honor these lines. Property owners often become unreasonably confident that the customary boundaries reflect their title, though, so sharing the survey information could help greatly in this discussion. Also, modern surveying techniques are much more accurate than older methods, so in comparing property titles there may be some overlap. These inaccuracies are usually settled by dividing the land in question.
You should also be aware of the laws of adverse possession. If a person has used a portion of your land for a period of time, as identified by state law, he could claim title to it when the statute of limitations for ejection has passed. This often protects fences built off the property boundaries.
At this point, consulting an attorney is money well spent.
According to Consumer Reports, should a neighbor's tree limb falls on your house, obtaining a satisfactory settlement often depends on your ability to prove that your neighbor knew and ignored the hazard.
If you see the potential for such a problem, take an escalating approach to head it off, documenting each step. Politely express your concern to your neighbor. If he disagrees, offer to share the cost of bringing in a tree surgeon or other professional for an opinion.
If your neighbor doesn't respond, follow up with a politely written letter reiterating your concern. Document both. Take photos of the subject of your concern. Consult your insurer to determine coverage should the limb fall on your house.
If the worst does come to pass, you still might have to go to small claims court to get satisfaction. There, your documentation should serve you well.
Noise encroachment is perhaps the most common inspiration for a neighborhood war. To combat it, first familiarize yourself with the local regulations. Make sure you aren't also violating code with your leaf-blower or lawnmower.
Then talk to other neighbors. If they are similarly put out, one of you should approach the transgressor as a representative of the group. This might convince them to address the problem.
Keep in mind that they may not even be aware that the dog is yapping or their child's 50 Cent tunes can be heard two states away. Here, a recording might come in handy, and most of us have the capability, with our cell phones, to record the sounds.
If your neighbor is unresponsive, begin a journal of sounds and times. You may discover that the occasions are infrequent, and your best route to neighborhood peace is to live and let live.
If calling the cops seems like your only remaining option, make sure that you have recordings, your log, names of like-minded neighbors and details of the transgressions ready for the officer, to prove that you aren't a grouch with unreasonable expectations. Don't stand on your stoop and watch the cop call the neighbor to task; this will only cause more resentment.
And for God's sake, don't take your frustrations out on the dog. It is barking for a reason, and that reason is that your neighbor is not treating it properly.
All of these problems are more easily dealt with when neighbors are familiar with one another, so a block party or similar ice-breaker can pay enormously in avoiding a street war. So think about meeting your neighbors there, rather than waiting until you're mad enough to spit.
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 2)
10-15-2008 @ 4:25PM
Joe Henderson said...
The overhanging limb might be the responsibility of the "offended" party...in most states there is the right to trim such limbs, and failure to do so could result in disallowal of any insurance claim. Might work the other way, but I doubt it.
As to barking dogs, etc. that becomes a court or animal control matter if cooperation cannot be obtained. Usually the thought of intervention is enough--althoiugh, there are sufficient stupid or uncarng people to keep these agencies and lawyers busy.
We have barking dogs next door, which does not bother me....they are feeding the neighborhood watch.
Reply
10-17-2008 @ 6:11PM
Drew MacIver said...
Here in the UK, you have the right to cut off the offending limb, but you must offer it back to your neighbor once cut, failure to do so constitutes theft, but if you offer it back they must either accept it, or lose all right of possession to said cut limb, which you can dispose of any way you see fit, and bill them for the privilege, lol
Great eh?
10-18-2008 @ 9:38AM
Dona said...
My sister's neighbor sued her to take her property so he could have another parking spot. All the other neighbors with two cars parked one behind the other in their own driveway or parked one on the street. That was not good enough for this bozo so he took her to court. She couldn't afford an attorney and her mortgage company didn't want to be bothered by it. They said the cost to represent her was more than the value of the propery she lost. Now she has him working on hotrods right outside her baby's window at all hours.
Reply
11-06-2008 @ 6:13PM
Sheerin said...
I would so make that Asshole's life a living hell!! He would move out of the country after I got through with him! That totally sucks for your sister dude, sorry.
10-17-2008 @ 4:48PM
Barbara said...
I ABSOLUTELY resent your comment about dogs who bark are not being properly cared for. What a pile of crap!!!!
I have spent the last year battling with my neighbor because my dogs bark. Without any preamble, his greeting to my dogs the day I moved in to my house was to stand on his back deck and blow an airhorn at them. Then, the idiot couldn't understand why they barked at him everytime they saw him!!! Let me say that stupidity is its own worst enemy. He set me up to fail from the beginning. If he heard more than three barks from any one of my three dogs, he called the police. Yes, he would count the barks. His wife also antagonized the situation by "walking" her cat along the fence line when she could see that the dogs were out. AND, when the police would respond to his ridiculous complaints I was being threatened with citations! Our ordinance states "frequent and habitual barking" which was not what was happening in my yard. My dogs barked to alert me to unusual activity on or around my property or when people came to my door. They barked at the cat because it was being displayed in a way that incited them to bark, and because they're dogs and it's a cat! They barked at him because he barked at them!
I finally had to have a meeting with the Chief of Police, one of the responding officers and the City Mediator to write him a letter to explain the law to him as it was meant to be interpreted instead of as this idiot wanted it to be defined in order to serve his purposes.
My dogs are beautiful and friendly (by the way, they don't bark at any of my other neighbors) and fabulous companions. I never leave them out unattended for fear of what this idiot may do when my back is turned. They bark because they have reason to bark! WHAT A STUPID COMMENT!
Here's a suggestion for your next article: What to do when you have irrational, inconsiderate neighbors who can't interpret a simply stated city ordinance.
Reply
10-17-2008 @ 6:02PM
Mary said...
I didn't take the article to mean ANY dog that barks is not taken care of it. Instead I interrupted it to mean any dog who incessantly barks while left outside 24/7. Obviously, that type of situation means the dog isn't taken care of. & I agree with the authors plea to NOT take it out on the dog because it is the owners fault. I didn't in any way interpt her article to mean any dog that barks at all is not taken care of.
10-25-2008 @ 9:30AM
Betty said...
I have a neighbor whose house is just 3 1/2 ft. from my property line & fence. They have attached a section of fence that width to one of my fence posts even with the back of my house & their dogs (3) bark on a regular basis, which is very annoying. The fence is welded wire so they can see all the way through my yard & also bark at everything on the other side of my yard. This past summer I couldn't use my yard because the dogs would bark every time someone is outside on my property. The neighbor doesn't see why any of this is a problem and will not honor my demands that the section of fence be removed. I paid an absorbatant amount for a survey just to prove to them it is my fence, and they still refuse to make any changes! What to do in this case???
11-08-2008 @ 7:51PM
s said...
i have a pet labrador retreiver who is an indoor dog and loves people, yes she barks at squirrels and strangers walking by, but she loves people/children and all visitors, she is a very timid loving docile dog.that is the breed we decided on because we have children and they have friends and we wanted a friendly dog. when she was two, we got new neighbors, i offered to bring the dog over to her outside, so she could get to know them, she said no, her children do not like dogs. well she put up a make shift fence(popsicle style)covering the metal fence that was there, still ok her perogative, i was not unhappy,. but i then find out it is because she is going to rent out a back room in her house(illegally) with ofcourse illegal tenants, the first group taunted my dog as they went into their apartment and said if my dog doesnt watch it they will kill her. ok i am the bad neighbor, those tenants moved out she proceeds to rent to someone who overdoses and dies in her aparment. then she rents to someone who threatens suicide. well is it my responsibility to stop my dog from barking at people as they walk past my house into her yard??? isnt that what dogs are supposed to do alert you?? well as i said my dog is in the house most times, and these people are unbelievable, they are not fussy about who they rent to (and we tried not to report her)and then she cant believe we get upset because her illegal tenants park IN our drive way, it really is out of hand and i will not stop my dog from barking, it is not prolonged and not at late hours because she is not out. as you said i will not let her out alone because i am afraid of what someone might do to her. then she has her brother park in my drive way and when my husband told him not to park in our drive way he said i am moving my car what are you going to do about it, so we called the police who really did not do much, so i guess i have the neighbors from down under.l.
10-17-2008 @ 5:49PM
Lilly said...
Yep. I agree with the other 2 posts on here...let's just feed the ignorant people who are afraid of dogs or don't like them. I have an indoor dog, who typically doesn't bark at anything. I have an outdoor cable that holds a 120 or 220 pound dog, she weighs less than 50 pounds. A pseudo neighbor was getting other neighbors upset about my dog. I began to watch her more closely as I generally take her to PetsMart and out to walk with me in public all the time and have no problems with her barking or acting aggressive and she was ready to break the cable to get to him. And began to bark at the other neighbors. Then I figured it out. He was carrying a SWORD like object, was YELLING at her each time he walked through the neighborhood, even tried to walk into the yard and remove her cable. He would swing the sword at her in a threatening manner. Since he did this and she acted so defensive towards him, other neighbors saw it and began to think she was aggressive and acted out towards her. Anyway, I nipped it in the bud and proactively REPORTED him to the local police. I still have to listen and watch carefully when I put her out on the cable and I try to avoid times that he will be out. I feel that she helps protect the neighborhood. She barks only at "non-neighbors" and this "pseudo-neighbor" that lives over a few streets. BTW the sheriff's dept told him that the dog is on a cable, is inside most of the time, and the other neighbors haven't complained...and suggested if he is bothered he take a different "hiking" route. I can understand CONSTANT barking, that keeps you awake, but if a dog is helping keep your property and neighborhood safe...then be grateful! We had been having constant attempted break-ins etc, until several people got dogs and a few got alarm systems...now no recent problems. So be thankful for those barks...they may be deterring criminals too!
Reply
10-17-2008 @ 6:05PM
otrpu said...
Cut the limb, shoot the dog. If the owner starts barking. . .shoot the neighbor
Reply
10-17-2008 @ 6:26PM
Cathy said...
But then, there is the part that the story is ref'g to....my neighbor has a pitbull that constantly chews on the wooden fence between our properties. Chews it to the point of great big holes, and the pitbull happily comes to our yard to pee all over it.
This upsets my dogs, of course!
And the neighbor REFUSES to repair - or rebuild - the fence. It is literally falling down.
This dog also goes absolutely nuts, every morning, at 4:00 a.m., when the owner comes home. And he is barking right under my window, which wakes me up.
These folks have lived here only a few years, and already, we simply cannot get along! A "neighborhood party" will not help. I know it is not the dog's fiult, but I want him GONE, and the fence fixed!
Reply
10-17-2008 @ 7:47PM
King said...
Any dog chewing through a wooden fence to enter my yard and to pee on my yard would disappear in this neighborhood. The dog apparently is a public menace. It is also of a breed that is popular among druggy types, in this area at least, and it should not be a breed that is kept in neighborhood. In my opinion, no felons should be allowed to possess any dog. And ... in consideration of the safety of your elderly or child-neighbors, you would be doing a public service to cast your magic wand and make white fang go bye bye.
10-17-2008 @ 6:07PM
drthepilot said...
I would first politely ask the neithbor to quiet his dogs - and the neighbor would most likely say something stupid like, "DUUUHHH thats what dogs do" then I would report him/her to the police or authorities, and if that doesnt work, I would use the airhorn or stereo in the middle of the night and say, "duh thats what stereos and air horns do". Barking Dogs not a hassle? What a crock, if you have a barking dog you are an inconsiderate jerk. Of coarse you don't notice it it - you are inconsiderate which, by definition means, you do not consider anyone but yourself / selfish. All the inconsiderate people should live in the same gutter, that way they can bring down eachothers home and leave the normal people alone. It is ok to have a dog but be responsible, same as owning a gun.
Reply
10-18-2008 @ 11:07AM
Greg said...
I would dig a hole big enough for them both and be done with it.
Reply
10-18-2008 @ 1:15PM
saravana said...
nice blog...
---------
Blaze Infotech
Reply
10-18-2008 @ 1:19PM
brook said...
ya i agree with your your blog. Property are wealth for every one for future needs. Problems may occur due to some personal emotions or due to ego.
---------------
Brook
FSBO
Reply
11-06-2008 @ 9:46AM
Shiralee said...
We rented from an absentee landlord while in the military. One day in early October 1969 it snowed and nearly an entire tree fell over onto the roof. Guess whose fault it was according to the owner? At our present house, from 1978 to a few years later, the neighbor's dog barked incessantly. Drove me NUTS!!!! One day, there was a thief in the neighborhood who broke into that house and the one on the other side of us. Why? Because the dog never stopped barking, people thought it was crying wolf. ;-) So there. Nothing but iron bars for us.
Reply
11-06-2008 @ 1:29PM
Annee said...
For the psychotic neighbor, no easy fix. However, taping the annoying noise could be worth the effort. When my daughter was a newborn, she slept in a cradle in our room. It was August, and windows had to be open. The neighbor's dog was chained out facing our house. Every time the dog barked, the baby jumped and started crying. This went on all night. Finally, post-partum exhaustion got the best of me. I picked up the phone and called the neighbor (2 am). I knew he was home so I let the phone ring about 30 times. Finally he answered. I said " Tom, listen to this (held the phone to the window). I figured that if WE couldn't sleep, neither should you." End of problem.
Of course, he was basically a decent guy and good neighbor as were we.
Reply
11-06-2008 @ 3:34PM
Anne M. said...
I've lived in my 2nd floor condo for 20 years and have never had a problem with neighbors on the third floor until last year. A family of 3 moved in including a 6 year old girl who takes ballet lessons and "practices" her tour jette's all over the uncarpeted floor at all hours of the day and night. How this little cherub's jumps and leaps could make as much noise as a bowling alley is beyond me. Then there's the leaks from their tub which has ruined my new ceiling and the fire that the husband set on their patio which melted the vinyl siding and caused smoke damage in my unit. I have complained to my condo board to at least see if we can make them put down some carpet. They won't help me. They won't help me get his insurance info to get my ceiling fixed and I had to have my carpeting cleaned.
One day, they had music blasting. Luckily, my husband had 4 foot speakers left over from his college days. We put them on top of our wall unit facing up towards the ceiling, in a Led Zepplin CD, turned the volume up to 4 (we never put it higher than 1 when we are home) and walked out the door for 30 minutes. We haven't had a problem with their music since.
Don't know what to do about the kid though.
Reply
11-07-2008 @ 1:12AM
Kim said...
Barking dogs at 4:00 am is a nuisance. I wrote to the neighbor, called the neighbor, but nothing was done to quiet the dog. I have dogs that only bark when something is wrong. I just trained them that way that's all. My dogs were never a problem in the neighborhood. My solution to the problem: I called the police at 4:15 am and told them there must be a problem at the house because the dog was barking, possibly a break-in. They went over there and I never heard the dog bark at 4:00 am again.
My other neighbors have 2 dogs who bark incessantly. Two little 'cute' dogs. Not cute to the people who have to listen to them bark, though. They bark because no one ever taught them not to. They bark because the owners do not have any respect for anyone. I live a little uphill from them and get my revenge in subtle ways. When the wind blows, my leaves go into their yard. When it rains, all the poo in my yard flows to theirs.
Dogs are like kids: they will only get away with what you let them get away with. All they need is proper training, love and discipline. They will do whatever you teach them.
Reply