neighbor's fence partially on my property

[hrhofmann]

They have a survey. I also have a survey from the same surveyor. I showed t hem where the line was. But they went ahead and did this in order to have t he entire top fit behind a phone pole that is on their property. Had they n ot faced the good side towards themselves, it would not have been an issue. All that is on my property are the 4x4 posts and the top. Do I have the ri ght to slice the posts and top right at the line? The fence back is attache d to the fence sides, which would give it stability. The reason for doing t his is the properties are staggered. I'm adding a fence to the back where t his fence isn't, and it won't line up. I know I have the right to cut off t ree limbs that hang over. But do I also have the right to cut back a fence that is hanging over? Don.

(e-mail link at home page bottom ).

Why in tarnation are you refusing to talk to the owner????????? Enough peo ple have said to do that that you are beginning to look like a fool for not taking the advice given to you by a majoity of those responding to your po sts!!!

[DerbyDad03]

Does "supervising" mean that the architect is accountable for the contractor's actions? If the contractor does something seriously wrong, would the architect's firm bear the final responsibility?

If the architect's firm is not officially acting as the general contractor, I don't think they would be responsible for the actions of any individual contractors.

[chaniarts]

easements are recorded with the deed. if your city has deeds online, you can see the easements. if he has a plat of his property, the easement will be indicated on that. he would probably require a plat to do anything that would require a permit for something outside his house walls.

[trader4]

You may think you know all about what's going on, but apparently not. Did you see a plan from the architect that says to put the fence on your property? If I had to guess, if the architect called out where to put the fence, he probably showed putting it exactly on the owner's property. The fence installer saw the telephone pole, realized that they could avoid it if the fence was just 1.5" over, figured no one would notice or care, and went and did it. Now, if you start calling up the architect, the contractor, do you think either one is going to take your calls and start discussing with you what did or did not happen? You're not paying them. If I were either of them, I wouldn't talk to you.

Also, if that architect called out putting up a fence and then using it as a retaining wall for 2 ft of earth, he must be nuts. Among obvious flaws, that wood is going to rot. And the fence may just fall over from the force on it. What does your code officials say about that?

The way you're proceeding is almost as bad as what they did to begin with. How would you like it if you're paying an architect and contractors and then the neighbor next door starts engaging with them about what they a re or aren't doing, instead of you? If you did that with me, I'd be pissed off. This is bizarre, why you refuse to talk to the owner.

And in the end, you beef, your claim, your course of action is with the PROPERTY OWNER.

[trader4]

actions? If the contractor does something seriously wrong, would the architect's firm bear the final responsibility?

don't think they would be responsible for the actions of any individual contractors.

I've never seen anything like this. If I hired an architect, contractors, etc and a neighbor was calling them up about what they did or didn't do wrong with some contruction project, instead of just coming to me, I'd be pissed. I mean if a contractor backed into my car, yeah, then I'd just go talk to the contractor. But if the contractor built a shed, fence, house, whatever on my property, I would be talking to the property owner. Another example of how small neighbor problems can get turned into major battles.

[jeff_wisnia]

I'm surprised you haven't yet mentioned how much you are paying in property tax for that 1-1/2 inch strip of land you can't use and moan about your neighbor not offering to reimburse you that amount each year.

"Good fences make good neighbors."

Jeff

[ChairMan]

In news: [e-mail], Don Wiss belched:

You keep ducking the question of *why* you haven't discussed this with the homeowner. He is the one ultimately responsible for what ever happens on his property

*NOT THE CONTRACTOR* So why haven't you talked to the homeowner?

[ChairMan]

+1 he keeps ducking that question must be a New York thing

[DerbyDad03]

Actually he has addressed that question. He has said that he would have to walk around the block to knock on his back yard neighbor's door. Maybe you don't do that in Brooklyn these days.

He also says he has seen the wife doing things with the doggy chalet and then going in the house and lowering the black out shades. I guess you don't yell across the backyard to your neighbors in Brooklyn these days.

I know what it costs to do this type of thing in the NYC area - my brother and SIL are gutting a house in Great Neck as we type. Architects, permits, contractors. It's ridiculously expensive. The reason I bring this up is because this issue does not appear to be happening in a neighborhood where you'd be afraid to knock on someone's door for fear of getting stabbed or shot or of having beer cans and bottles lobbed over the offending fence the next time they have a party.

I know when I grew up in a row house in Queens, we knew just about all of our neighbors, especially the ones whose yards back up to each other. Maybe it was due to the fact that we weren't living in million dollar row houses that we actually interacted with those around us.

I guess times have changed.

[Don Wiss]

Because I can't do anything until he comes home from work!! I don't want to deal with the Japanese wife. As a young investment banker he isn't going to get home early.

There is no phone number listed for this new house. I called the old one in Manhattan. I got a voice mail that listed off a different number than what I dialed. I left a message. I walked over there. They were not home. Actually I'm pretty sure they have not been home for the past week.

Don.

(e-mail link at home page bottom).

[Unquestionably Confused]

If it's not in writing, it didn't happen. Send him a letter with delivery confirmation. They don't have to sign for it, but the postman will indicate that it was placed in their mailbox as addressed.

In the letter, lay it out for him and request that he contact you to discuss the matter. Make it matter of fact and non-threatening. You've approached with the olive branch in your mitt, the next move (or non-move) is his.

No matter what happens down the road, you've been the gentleman and made the first overture to get this matter straightened out between the two of you.

[Dan Espen]

Nope. I lived in the Bronx. Knew all my neighbors and stayed on good terms with all of them.

This "Don" guy keeps talking about attacking the fence and crap like that. Hope he doesn't move in next door. He's got a 1.5 inch encroachment but needs to build his fence 6 inches from the property line. Do the math.

When the fence was built, there should have been a discussion between neighbors. Maybe there was, Don never said when the fence was built. Now that its built and it's not in his way, I think he should move on.

A while back I put a fence 6 inches from my neighbors fence. (Too close to be "legal".) Of course we discussed it and he and I agreed before hand that we both preferred it that way. (Better to keep the deer out.) The 6 inch gap is filled with wire netting.

So, it's not a New York thing. New Yorkers have a reputation, but it's not true. I had some great neighbors and I miss them. Neighbors fighting starts with idiots. Idiot's are not confined to NYC.

[micky]

Your front lawn should sue your back lawn.

You should have made them move the house.

[Don Wiss]

I was quite wrong. When I was making dinner he was out in the backyard checking the work that had been done today. (My kitchen sink looks out the window, like all kitchen sinks should.) While the retaining walls on the perimeter are 3/4" cedar, the retaining wall on the inside, what they can see, is brick. Today it got wood for seating on top.

9:15 was too late to go over. Beside I was fixing my dinner. I thought they had moved into the upper three floors. For the past 10-11 months they have been camping out on the first floor with a hot plate while the upper three floors are being finished. (Maybe they eat out a lot?) I think I'm also wrong about the blackout shades on every window. If they were still only on the first floor the lights would all be out in the upper three floors. What has been different for the past week is they have not used the electric blackout shade that is on the ground floor. I've seen it being lowered. It has not been lowered and the light has been left on. That so the two little yappy dogs can find their way to the dog door that leads to the doggy chalet.

I'll have to figure out how to word a letter.

Don.

(e-mail link at home page bottom).

[Don Wiss]

What is this 6" from the property line? Fences in my zoning district can be right at the line.

There was never a discussion. The only discussion was when the first post went in I went out and measured it and told the workmen it was on my property and to move it. The said they were trying to get all of the pole inside the fence. Because the posts are on my side this was hard to do. I told them I didn't care if the fence went around the pole. You can see the hole in the fence for the pole:

I don't know anything about 6". I know all the neighbors on my street. As I've written before, no one knows who is on the other street. Except for one outgoing fellow from the other street that walks his dog around the block. Most people just walk their dog up and down the block they live on.

Don.

(e-mail link at home page bottom).

[Don Wiss]

I found the online deed for the recent purchase. No plat. The property is described by how many feet from the avenue, etc. The same way the surveyor describes how your lot fits into the block.

No easement noted on any of the 10 pages. There is a page for an Affidavit of Compliance with Smoke Detector Requirement. And a page for Customer Registration Form for Water and Sewer Billing.

By searching on the Block and Lot I don't see any easements either. The online database doesn't go back as far the pole installation. It seems it only goes back to 1993.

Looking at my block and lot I do find the easement that I had put on my house in 2002.

Don.

(e-mail link at home page bottom).

[Don Wiss]

There is a filing of the survey he had done. The pole is noted. Just like it is noted on my survey. But that is simply the surveyor noting a landmark, like the big tree is noted.

Don.

(e-mail link at home page bottom).

[Dan Espen]

Forgot that parts of NYC are so tightly packed that reason flies out the window. Putting one fence right up against another just seems wrong.

So if your new fence is 2 inches deep and the neighbor is 1.5 inches over, you're going to loose 3.5 inches.

I see some kind of gap on the right.

So, above you say there was no discussion, but you repeat a discussion. First you say you asked the workers to move it, then you told them you didn't care.

Sounds like you agreed to them putting it there.

Too late to do it over.

If I were you, I'd build the same kind of fence on the 2 sides of your yard. Then you save 1/3 on materials and you only loose 1.5 inches.

Outgoing? Yep, it takes someone to make the first step.

[Wes Groleau]

Why do you ask a question when you have already decided you won't like the answer?

[Don Wiss]

There was never a discussion with the neighbor. Only discussion with the workmen.

I never ever told them I didn't care. I don't know where you got the idea that I said I didn't care.

Don.

(e-mail link at home page bottom).