Sharing expenses with a neighbor

[meirman]

Am I obliged or at least in practice, if I want to get along with him, stuck paying so much for part of the fence replacement with my neighbor. I was prepared to pay 1/2 of 1/3 which I thought might be

30 or 40 dollars, but he says half of the one part we share is $125.

Esp. since I don't think this part of the fence needs replacing anyhow, for me that is a lot of money.

Does it matter that last summer, I repaired his back yard fence? I only asked for the money to pay for the wood and gate latch. I didn't want to see him tear down a cedar fence and replace it with a cheaper less durable pine fence. I had to search the web to find a local store that sold cedar, go to the other side of the city to order (although I combined it with errands), go back to pick it up, front the money, make the pickets and rails from wider pieces. Then when I was 90% done he said he was going to put in a new fence. He said that when his 5 year-old daughter fell against the fence, it moved instead of being strong. I said that was good, she's less likely to get hurt. (AFAIK, it is strong and stiff. Maybe there is one week section.

I live in a townhouse and my neighbors and I all of them have in front an entrance door into a hall and a sliding glass door into the kitchen. In front of the SGD is a small "patio?", with room for a table and chairs, or garden equipment, firewood, grill etc. In front of that is what they call the "privacy fence" My next door neighbor's house is the mirror image of mine, and we share one piece of the privacy fence about 8 feet long, as in the sketch below.

Street

Yard Yard

___________________________ | | | | | | | | | |____ | ____| | | _____________________|_________________________ ==== ======= ======= ==== Door Sliding Glass Doors Door One per house

House 1 House 2

I rebuilt my fence about 4 years ago, but did not touch the middle piece because it was fine, IMO. I think when his wife was single, and lived there, one of her boyfriends fixed the fence for her, but didn't use treated wood. AFAICT, this part is still fine, except for a 1 x

1/2 inch piece of T1-11 that is hidden by molding anyhow. Now he wants to rebuild his fence, and he is hiring someone to do it.

He's bothered because there is a crack in the side of the 2x4 that borders the wall. I don't think it matters, but if it did, I'd put in some plastic wood or something and repaint it.

Fixing and fixing up my car and my house are my major hobbies, and I rarely hire anyone to do anything.

We went together on a roof a couple years ago. We both wanted the same color.

He also wants vinyl siding. Maybe I need it, maybe I don't, but I would like us to get along.

Meirman

-- If emailing, please let me know whether or not you are posting the same letter. Change domain to erols.com, if necessary.

[meirman]

In alt.home.repair on Sat, 13 Aug 2005 23:21:18 GMT "Edwin Pawlowski" posted:

It was built by the builder of the whole development, every pair of houses has one, and the section we share was replaced once by the woman who lives there now (maybe the fourth owner), but now she is married to this guy. That time she didn't tell me she was going to do it, didn't ask for anything from me, and the workers may or may not have come around to my side to work on it (no evidence either way.)

Meirman

-- If emailing, please let me know whether or not you are posting the same letter. Change domain to erols.com, if necessary.

[Edwin Pawlowski]

Who owns the fence? Was the original a shared cost? If so, you may have some obligation, if not you should have no obligation. If you don't want the fence and do not share ownership, you should not have to pay anything.

[Todd H.]

Surveys are taken as a standard practice in all real estate transactions I have ben involved in. One of the things a survey tells you is where a fence is on your property or the neighbor's side of the lot line. In all cases I've dealt with (albeit only 2), the fence is on one side or the other.

You may wish to review your survey and see if this thing is even your problem to fix at all.

I'd ask the same question of any home owner's association if there are any local covenant and agreements involved.

Finally, I'd consult a local real estate attorney for a short bit with both pieces of the above info in hand and ask for a determination of my liability in this case, and then act accordingly.

Best Regards,

-- Todd H.

[G Henslee]

This person can't afford 125 bucks to repair a fence and you send them to a lawyer? Oh wait, that's after they hire a surveuyor at $100 bucks an hour.

Great advice.

[G Henslee]

*IF* it's a common fence, you can tell them to pack sand or help pay for it. What you did in the past is water under the bridge.

IMHO, vinyl siding is for low end dog houses. YMMV

[Edwin Pawlowski]

Sure, spend $200 for the attorney to get out of paying the $125.

[meirman]

Thanks for the advice....

In alt.home.repair on Sat, 13 Aug 2005 18:18:48 -0400 meirman posted:

I was concerned as much or more with how to get along with him as what my legal resposibility is. I figured managing social relationships related to property is as relevant to this group as legal problems are, which often get discussed. :)

I ended up calling him a while ago and leaving a message that I thought 250 was an awful lot of money for a simple 7 foot section of fence and one 4x4 pole, especially when done by guys who aren't carpenters or even repair guys full-time and who don't have a home-improvement license. [Not positive they don't, but probably not.] And I asked him if he had seen the quality of their work. [Probably not**] And that the current section was fine and just needed a couple spiral nails and some wood putty and a coat of paint. (there's a crack in one 2x4 that isn't affecting the fence, but he thinks it matters.]

Ant that it seemed like too much and too much to commit to in advance since I don't know the quality of the work.

**He knows them from church. Some people who are very religious can still be bad carpenters... and not even know it.

Meirman

-- If emailing, please let me know whether or not you are posting the same letter. Change domain to erols.com, if necessary.

[Charlie Bress]

Since you know the measurement of the section in question, I would try getting a quick telephone estimate from a fence company or two. This is not a complex job and can be well enough priced as a sanity check. It is all in how you phrase the question. Then ask the neighbor for a copy of his estimate. If he has a price he wants you to share, he ought to have something on paper to back himself up. Or maybe he is trying to get you to pay for the whole thing.

Remember what Pres. Reagan said "trust but verify"

Charlie

[G Henslee]

right poop...

[Pop]

Kaning again I see, huh? You're a real wart on the ass of progress, you know that?

: >>Am I obliged or at least in practice, if I want to get along with him, : >>stuck paying so much for part of the fence replacement with my : >>neighbor. I was prepared to pay 1/2 of 1/3 which I thought might be : >>30 or 40 dollars, but he says half of the one part we share is $125. : >

: >

: > Surveys are taken as a standard practice in all real estate : > transactions I have ben involved in. One of the things a survey tells : > you is where a fence is on your property or the neighbor's side of the : > lot line. In all cases I've dealt with (albeit only 2), the fence is : > on one side or the other. : >

: > You may wish to review your survey and see if this thing is even your : > problem to fix at all. : >

: > I'd ask the same question of any home owner's association if there are : > any local covenant and agreements involved. : >

: > Finally, I'd consult a local real estate attorney for a short bit with : > both pieces of the above info in hand and ask for a determination of : > my liability in this case, and then act accordingly. : >

: > Best Regards, : > -- : > Todd H. : >

: This person can't afford 125 bucks to repair a fence and you send them : to a lawyer? Oh wait, that's after they hire a surveuyor at $100 bucks : an hour. : : Great advice.

[Pop]

You drink way too much. Get help.

: > Esp. since I don't think this part of the fence needs replacing : > anyhow, for me that is a lot of money. : >

: > Does it matter that last summer, I repaired his back yard fence? I : > only asked for the money to pay for the wood and gate latch. : >

: >

: > Meirman : > -- : : : *IF* it's a common fence, you can tell them to pack sand or help pay for : it. What you did in the past is water under the bridge. : : IMHO, vinyl siding is for low end dog houses. YMMV

[PaPaPeng]

For a few hundred bucks pay for the whole fence. You can do anything with it or change it anytime you want including painting it to suit your house's color, not his. But he has to come to you to make any changes as you "own" it. You can't buy that kind of peace and power anywhere for that price.

[Edwin Pawlowski]

You make good points, but the neighbor want $125, the OP is thinking $30. You can't buy much wood for $30 today and no fence company is going to do anything at all for that price.

[Greg O]

I had a 50 foot long cedar fence blow down a few years ago. Insurance paid me $1600 to replace it. $1600/50 feet= $32 a foot. The OP is describing a 7 foot long section of fence, 7 feet x $32 =$224. Seems to me the price is about right IF you are paying someone to replace it. Good luck getting a professional company to do it. Greg

[Colbyt]

You need to be especially careful of the contractor praising Jesus as he reaches for your pocketbook.

Colbyt

[meirman]

In alt.home.repair on Sun, 14 Aug 2005 18:33:15 GMT "Edwin Pawlowski" posted:

My 30 (or 50) was only supposed to be a sixth of the price, half of the third we share. I thought before that it was less, but I'm pretty sure now the last ones I heard about were about 300 dollars. I did mine myself, so I don't have any firm number anymore.

I had called him and left the message I wrote about, but called back later to tell him I'd pay the whole thing**. He said the guy did do this sort of thing for a living (maybe that's what makes him more expensive), and had built (temporary?) stages for the church.

(BTW, the fence is about 5 feet high, T1-11, with a 2 x 4 along the bottom, another along the top, quarter round moldings at the 2x4s and at the 4x4 posts. Treated lumber, but still a lot cheaper than cedar, I think.)

**Then he complimented me on my knowledge of home repair and car repair, and asked if I could fix his Saturn, for which the light behind the radio's LCDs doesn't work. It's not even his car anymore; it belongs to his brother now, but I said if he brought it by, I would look at it. I'll look at it, but I don't plan to fix it. :)

tHANKS FOR all the help.

Meirman

-- If emailing, please let me know whether or not you are posting the same letter. Change domain to erols.com, if necessary.

[Me]

Tell him to leave a message on the Saturn Forum detailing his problem. Lots of good help there.

[PaPaPeng]

For some reason car radio metal cases do not have any metal tabs or screws to disassemble. They cannot be opened up to fix anything.

[NapalmHeart]

rec.autos.makers.saturn