Broke last barrier with neighbor

[FerrumB5]

We moved in recently in our first house (last September) and about a month ago we broke the last barrier between us and our neighbor - the stake with red tape than county measurers put in. Conversation - "Hey, do we need that stake?". "No, we don't". Done :) He's giving me a lot of advice on lawn care, I helped him with lawn mower maintenance. Fixed other neighbor's fence just because. Life is good

[WranglerBowman]

That's awesome and rare!  I worked as a surveyor during some of my summers between college years and people are absolutely insane about their property lines and I spent a lot of time surveying property corners for people to solve disputes.  When I moved to my house the first thing I did was find my property corners, when the neighbor saw me doing this she went ape sheot and started yelling at me how those were her trees.  I calmly tried to tell her I had no plans to do anything and simply just wanted to see what a $270k mortgage got me.  I personally could care less if kids walk through my property or a neighbor who mows some of my yard...now if your causing destruction to my property I'll probably say something but I'm not going to lose my mind over something stupid like most people.

[meghan88]

That's awesome and rare!  I worked as a surveyor during some of my summers between college years and people are absolutely insane about their property lines and I spent a lot of time surveying property corners for people to solve disputes.  When I moved to my house the first thing I did was find my property corners, when the neighbor saw me doing this she went ape sheot and started yelling at me how those were her trees.  I calmly tried to tell her I had no plans to do anything and simply just wanted to see what a $270k mortgage got me.  I personally could care less if kids walk through my property or a neighbor who mows some of my yard...now if your causing destruction to my property I'll probably say something but I'm not going to lose my mind over something stupid like most people.

Thing is, you might want to worry - at least a bit - about prescriptive easements:  http://www.dummies.com/how-to/content/acquire-easements-by-prescription.html
Most (normal) people aren't inclined to knowingly launch and assert an easement claim over someone else's property, but if someone does try it, it might impact a property's value.  Just something to be aware of, along with the prescriptive period (could be anywhere from 5 to 20 years) in your jurisdiction.

[FerrumB5]

Just did the same with the other neighbor to my right. They do have a fence as they owned a dog, but on the front yard the stake was the only "barrier". Not anymore.

[WranglerBowman]

Just did the same with the other neighbor to my right. They do have a fence as they owned a dog, but on the front yard the stake was the only "barrier". Not anymore.

You're approaching Utopia!

[MrFrugalChicago]

I thought the final barrier was when you had sex with someone.  Hum.

[Dezrah]

My parents own land in a small town that borders another neighborhood.  They were originally going to build on it but changed their mind and now it's just investment property. 

Every few years she has to send out a surveyor to make sure the neighboring houses aren't encroaching.  Inevitably, some of are just by innocent creep.  Maybe someone put a trampoline into the space or built out a garden.  She has a lawyer send out C&D letters informing people they need to remove these encroachments.  The vast majority of people didn't realize that's what they were doing and willingly moved without making a stink about it.

Truthfully, they don't care about these things being on their property, but they do want to make sure they maintain the total amount of land they paid for and demonstrate proactive limiting of liability (someone hurting themselves on a trampoline on your land when you just let it slide is a recipe for disaster).  They actually had one person whose fence was several inches into their land and they just wrote up an agreement with the owner (legal fees paid for by the encroacher) that both parties recognized the surveyed boundaries and agreed that my parents retained the final right about that section of the fence.

It's an awfully big hassle for an investment that might break even after you account for taxes.

[marty998]

At the risk of starting a Reddit type comment reply list...

I thought the final barrier was when you had sex with someone.  Hum.

With them and their partner?

[Tom Bri]

Grrr. I hate when neighbors swing wide with their mowers over my land. Nice people, but they drove over a wild plant that I am trying to encourage. It isn't just a foot or two either, two full mower widths with a big riding mower. Maybe I'll put up stakes.

[druth]

My parents own land in a small town that borders another neighborhood.  They were originally going to build on it but changed their mind and now it's just investment property. 

Every few years she has to send out a surveyor to make sure the neighboring houses aren't encroaching.  Inevitably, some of are just by innocent creep.  Maybe someone put a trampoline into the space or built out a garden.  She has a lawyer send out C&D letters informing people they need to remove these encroachments.  The vast majority of people didn't realize that's what they were doing and willingly moved without making a stink about it.

Truthfully, they don't care about these things being on their property, but they do want to make sure they maintain the total amount of land they paid for and demonstrate proactive limiting of liability (someone hurting themselves on a trampoline on your land when you just let it slide is a recipe for disaster).  They actually had one person whose fence was several inches into their land and they just wrote up an agreement with the owner (legal fees paid for by the encroacher) that both parties recognized the surveyed boundaries and agreed that my parents retained the final right about that section of the fence.

It's an awfully big hassle for an investment that might break even after you account for taxes.

Isn't it cheaper to build a fence than to bring out surveyors and send C&D letters every few years?

[FernFree]

Grrr. I hate when neighbors swing wide with their mowers over my land. Nice people, but they drove over a wild plant that I am trying to encourage. It isn't just a foot or two either, two full mower widths with a big riding mower. Maybe I'll put up stakes.

I hate this too!  My neighbor tries to be helpful but he cuts his "grass" (it's all just weeds) about 1/2" tall and I really don't appreciate him scalping my lawn every week and leaving a crooked line between our lawns.  He's the best neighbor I've ever had in all other respects though, so I don't say anything. :)

[Tom Bri]

Grrr. I hate when neighbors swing wide with their mowers over my land. Nice people, but they drove over a wild plant that I am trying to encourage. It isn't just a foot or two either, two full mower widths with a big riding mower. Maybe I'll put up stakes.

I hate this too!  My neighbor tries to be helpful but he cuts his "grass" (it's all just weeds) about 1/2" tall and I really don't appreciate him scalping my lawn every week and leaving a crooked line between our lawns.  He's the best neighbor I've ever had in all other respects though, so I don't say anything. :)

Exactly. Good people, otherwise, so why raise a stink?