Real Estate Law

Ask a Real Estate Law Question, Get an Answer ASAP!

Questions about Property Line Laws

A property line is a legal boundary line that defines your property and separates it from your neighbor’s. If your neighbor has a fence, a structure or a new addition to his home that crosses your property line, this could end up becoming a boundary dispute. In a situation like this, by comparing deed copies, you can clearly make out where your property lines lie. If the deed does not show it, you can arrange for a paid survey to earmark your property line.

Listed below are a few questions answered by lawyers on property line related issues.

My neighbor built a fence on my property before I bought it. At a certain point, the fence extends 60 feet into my property. How can I make him move it?

What you should first do is to contact a property lawyer to understand your rights. This is important since many states have a legal concept called “adverse possession”. This is basically a legal way to get title to land that does not belong to you by possessing it openly for a certain amount of time. The property lawyer will go through your case and tell you if adverse possession already applies to you. In the event that it doesn’t apply, you will need to get the neighbor to move the fence, otherwise he/she might be able to get the title to the land through adverse possession at some point. You may want to contact a lawyer as soon as possible.

When I moved into my property in Brooklyn, there was a wall on my property line. It was installed with uneven bricks, bulging cement, and was unfinished. Now, new owners have moved in on the other side of the wall. Are they responsible for repairing the wall?

The exterior part of the wall needs to be finished. What you could do is file a complaint with code enforcement. You could find more information at: http://www.nyc.gov/html/dob/html/contact/contact.shtml

My daughter is involved in a property line dispute with a neighbor in Wisconsin. The papers show that the neighbor owns less than 10 feet on one side. This would make the land under debate belong to my daughter but no one knows exactly where the property corners are. Can my daughter use squatter’s rights to claim the 10 feet since she has been maintaining that strip for the past 10 years?

Based on the facts of your case, your daughter seems to have ownership and the right to possession. If there continues to be a dispute regarding this, then both parties should hire an attorney to try and sort out the matter without having to go to court and file a lawsuit. Squatter’s rights falls under adverse possession which requires that your daughter and any previous owners need to have maintained the section of the property for at least 20 years continuously to have become entitled to claim ownership.

My neighbor did a survey of his land in Oregon and it seems like my fence has crossed the property line and is on his lot by four feet. I think that the land should be mine by adverse possession. Is there a time limit before which I need to claim this or file a law suit?

To acquire quiet title to this land by adverse possession, you would need to prove to the court that your use of the land has been continuous, open, notorious, and hostile for the statutory period. This period would amount to 10 years in Oregon per Oregon Code 105.620; 12.050.

Arguments or disagreements over property lines can lead to a lot of unpleasantness and poor neighborly relations. That is why it is best to find out where your property line ends and have clear documentation that proves it.

Recent Property Line Questions

My neighbor planted a row of Oleander 12 years ago before we

My neighbor planted a row of Oleander 12 years ago before we bought our property. He said he planted them on his side of the property line but over the years the Oleander has expanded onto my property. He used to maintain the plants fairly well but now allows them to grow over 7 feet high and overhanging my property. He also does not control expanding roots and droppings blowing onto my side. Our dog became very ill last week after eating an Oleander blossom in our fences yard as witnessed by my wife. In just a few hours our dog developed vomiting and extreme internal inflamation and her organs began shutting down. After 6 days of intensive hospital care and $1100.00 she had to be uthanized. I have asked the neighbor to remove the Oleander so that we can feel safe for our health and feel safe to get another dog. He refuses to do anything to help stating (they haven't been a problem in 12 years). What remedies are available for us?
Hi, I applied for a construction permit back in 2006 for a

Hi, I applied for a construction permit back in 2006 for a shed that I was using as a pool house behind my house. I also got an electrical permit for a subpanel to be put in the pool house. I also had to get approval from zoning. I passed my electrical and building permit and did get approval from zoning. I just recently was going to try and finish the pool house and add outlets and a mini split a/c system. I was told for the A/C system I need approval from zoning again. So I applied for zoning approval and permits for electrical and plumbing. I just received a letter in the mail from zoning regarding my application for the A/C zoning approval, stating that my pool house needs to be 20 feet from the property line and that I also need to get zoning approval for my pool house. I guess they do not realize that I already received approval for the shed back in 2006. But what concerns me is that my shed is only 17 feet from the property line. I looked on their sheet for accessory structures and it does not specifically state how far they should be from the property line. They say from bodies of water and also if the shed is less then 100 sq ft it can be 3 feet away from property line. My shed is 200 sq ft. I could remember talking with the zoning officer in 2006 and he told me it could be 15 feet so that is what I used. Now I feel sick not sure how to handle the situation because there is no room to move it and the electrical pipes underground are already in place for years. I was wondering if the approval I received from building department verified the distance from the property line or is that not there responsibility. Also I would like to know what I should do that could make me finish this as quickly as possible. Thank You.
My husband and I just bought a house thats a new construction.

My husband and I just bought a house that's a new construction. (It was on the market; we didn't contract for it to be built.) On closing day, we did the final walk-through with the builder and our realtor. The builder had re-sodded the backyard because it had previously be messed up by standing water. He explained to us that he had dug a trench and re-routed the water, but if that didn't work to call him, let him, and he had other things he could try.

Fast forward 10 days to when we moved in. The backyard in that same area was a soggy mess. The trench was an active stream, and has gotten wider. Behind our fence is additional wooded land that is ours. Today, I went back there to see where all the water was coming from. There are two staked-off area where the builder put up sheets and gravel, trying to stop the water. I followed the water upstream...and found a culvert, mostly hidden by moss, disposed-of sod, and large rocks. Dumping water down into our backyard. It was not disclosed to us in any way at all that this was there.

Now, we're in the situation of likely not being able to impede the flow of the water because the city owns this (the only easement we were told of was a sewer easement just behind our property line, which we're fine with). Also, it will cost THOUSANDS of dollars for a drainage specialist to fix this. We've emailed the builder multiple times, but he has not responded.

I know that we have an implied warranty in my state (NC). However, what other options do we have? We NEVER would have bought this house had we been presented, fairly, with all the information. I'm not even able to let my children play in the backyard because it's so wet. This was supposed to be our dream house, and I hate it.