Kinda have a weird one. I think I already know the answer but not sure if any lawyers in the house.
When I moved into my current house 6 years ago, my neighbor insisted that I owned a wedge of land next to my house (around .25-.3 acres). Per the plat I did not. He insisted even saying it would be a terrible property line which I agree as it puts the property line only 10 feet off my patio on a 1 acre lot. Me being a nice neighbor just figured ok, maybe I'm wrong and certainly not going to get into an argument about it. So for 5 years (until mid 2020) I took care of it. Mowed, did lawn treatment, everything. I even approached him in the spring of 2020 to buy it to make official but he again insisted it wasn't his but "sure, I'd probably sell".
Well, in mid of last year the owner on the opposite side of him had the property zoned. Low and behold he comes up to me and says yeah, it was his land and he didn't want to sell. I was pretty pissed since I'd taken care of it for years and also know the previous owners did too. So suddenly at year 14 of other people taking care of his property (and telling him it was his) he finally agreed it was his. I don't think it's his intent but in KY the adverse possession criteria is 15 years so just squeaked in.
Now he's actually a nice guy and there isn't any issue between us really but I'm worried since he said they were probably moving in a few years when they retire. He doesn't have a problem with me using the land to get to my basement with my truck (completely necessary due to property lines) but I'm worried if future owner would be so nice. Also, my septic tanks are right on the property line and I'm a little worried they could be an issue if someone really made a fuss. I need to check with the zoning office to confirm. He did say if it was an issue that he'd work with me on that but not sure how that would work out.
Anyhow, I'm curious, since he actively denied ownership for 14 years, is there any standing I could use should it become an issue with the tanks? I would absolutely want to avoid any legal action but I also don't want to be backed into a corner potentially that could cost me a massive amount to fix. Just want for back pocket should it need to be escalated.
Thanks,