Political Crossfire Forums

[Richard Owl Mirror]

Grey Area of being a neighbor

Without communicating his intentions,
our neighbor began cutting limbs off a tree on our property.
The trunk of this tree sits about 20-25 feet from the property line.
It is a large Maple with a broad sweeping reach.
Reaching over the neighbor's yard by 10-20 feet depending on which branch.
His method was hack and whack,
however he felt about the particular branch he eyed next.
His complaint with the tree residing on our property wasn't aesthetic
rather he doesn't like the amount of leaves that rain down in the fall.
For some reason,
he believes that cutting off a few limbs is going to stem the tide across his boundary and cause him
an extra amount of work that apparently he deems unnecessary and an encroachment of our lives upon his.

~@~

Without communicating his intentions,
our neighbor decided the construction crew he had hired should use my driveway instead of his because they would be driving one of those Bob-cat dozer-loaders back and forth, up and down the drive picking up sand from the pile dumped at the end of the drive and the pallet of bricks next to the pile.
They would also have had to drive across his grass from right to left and around through the gate. He apparently decided that they should dump the load of sand in the middle of our driveway and stack the bricks there also, then drive back and forth across our driveway and our lawn to go through the gate on his left. The activity across my property cracked the concrete driveway more than it already was, and I was left with two (2ft wide) tracks from the traffic of the Bob-cat loader.
When I asked what was going on, my neighbor replied that since his driveway and lawn were in better shape than mine,
it only made sense to further erode the quality of my property instead of his.

~@~

These are two true real-life stories which happened to me.
The story of the tree happened just recently,
and the story of the driveway happened a few years ago while I was still married and still disabled.

Before revealing how I handled both incidents,
I'd like a few responses on how these situations might be handled.
I tend to believe a response may differ between people who live in a city/suburb and those who live in small town USA.
I hope my question will elicit both types of responses.

[LostSoul3412]

Depends... were you harmed or disadvantaged in any way by your neighbor's actions, or was it merely inconvenient and intrusive?

[Richard Owl Mirror]

LostSoul3412 wrote: Depends... were you harmed or disadvantaged in any way by your neighbor's actions, or was it merely inconvenient and intrusive?

Ever go in for a haircut and they only cut one side? That would be the condition our tree was left in.
My drive had two previous cracks and when the workers cleaned off there mess there were 4-5 more brand new cracks
and I had to fill in the ruts and lay new sod down over a 40 foot length.
I would classify the actions as intrusive more than inconvenient.
Disadvantaged in that the repair of my lawn came out of my pocket financially as my neighbor made it plain
he did not intend to make any repairs.

[The Comrade]

i know it sounds lame but i would demand him to repay you for your driveway and lawn, then tell him that if he touches your tree again you'll cut off his arms.


okay so maybe the last part is a little...off base...but i think it would get your point across.

[perdidochas]

Richard Owl Mirror wrote: Grey Area of being a neighbor

Without communicating his intentions,
our neighbor began cutting limbs off a tree on our property.
The trunk of this tree sits about 20-25 feet from the property line.
It is a large Maple with a broad sweeping reach.
Reaching over the neighbor's yard by 10-20 feet depending on which branch.
His method was hack and whack,
however he felt about the particular branch he eyed next.
His complaint with the tree residing on our property wasn't aesthetic
rather he doesn't like the amount of leaves that rain down in the fall.
For some reason,
he believes that cutting off a few limbs is going to stem the tide across his boundary and cause him
an extra amount of work that apparently he deems unnecessary and an encroachment of our lives upon his.

Well, if they overhang his property that's his right. A shi**y thing to do, but legal.

Richard Owl Mirror wrote: ~@~

Without communicating his intentions,
our neighbor decided the construction crew he had hired should use my driveway instead of his because they would be driving one of those Bob-cat dozer-loaders back and forth, up and down the drive picking up sand from the pile dumped at the end of the drive and the pallet of bricks next to the pile.
They would also have had to drive across his grass from right to left and around through the gate. He apparently decided that they should dump the load of sand in the middle of our driveway and stack the bricks there also, then drive back and forth across our driveway and our lawn to go through the gate on his left. The activity across my property cracked the concrete driveway more than it already was, and I was left with two (2ft wide) tracks from the traffic of the Bob-cat loader.
When I asked what was going on, my neighbor replied that since his driveway and lawn were in better shape than mine,
it only made sense to further erode the quality of my property instead of his.

Well, I think you would have legal recourse to have the track marks resodded, and the driveway fixed. You also would have had the legal right to kick the workmen off of your property after they put the sand and bricks on it.

Richard Owl Mirror wrote: ~@~

These are two true real-life stories which happened to me.
The story of the tree happened just recently,
and the story of the driveway happened a few years ago while I was still married and still disabled.

Before revealing how I handled both incidents,
I'd like a few responses on how these situations might be handled.
I tend to believe a response may differ between people who live in a city/suburb and those who live in small town USA.
I hope my question will elicit both types of responses.

Well, in the first case, I would leave it alone. In the second, I would ask for sodding to be done, that, or I would figure out a good excuse to drive across his lot.

[perdidochas]

Richard Owl Mirror wrote: LostSoul3412 wrote: Depends... were you harmed or disadvantaged in any way by your neighbor's actions, or was it merely inconvenient and intrusive?

Ever go in for a haircut and they only cut one side? That would be the condition our tree was left in.
My drive had two previous cracks and when the workers cleaned off there mess there were 4-5 more brand new cracks
and I had to fill in the ruts and lay new sod down over a 40 foot length.
I would classify the actions as intrusive more than inconvenient.
Disadvantaged in that the repair of my lawn came out of my pocket financially as my neighbor made it plain
he did not intend to make any repairs.

Well, what else did you do?

[LostSoul3412]

Richard Owl Mirror wrote: Disadvantaged in that the repair of my lawn came out of my pocket financially as my neighbor made it plain
he did not intend to make any repairs.

I would have presented a summons and made him pay.

[agentkgb]

Richard Owl Mirror wrote: When I asked what was going on, my neighbor replied that since his driveway and lawn were in better shape than mine,
it only made sense to further erode the quality of my property instead of his.
That's crazy. I'd definitely try to make him pay to repair it, though I have no idea what kind of legal stuff that would involve.

[Corona]

The Comrade wrote: i know it sounds lame but i would demand him to repay you for your driveway and lawn, then tell him that if he touches your tree again you'll cut off his arms.


okay so maybe the last part is a little...off base...but i think it would get your point across.

Just one arm. So he looks like the tree.

[VBach37]

I would definitely have kicked the workmen off my property as trespassers. As for the tree; lacking a legal recourse, I would find things of a similar nature to return the "favor." Perhaps cut down the whole tree so that it lands on his property, and then only dispose of the half on my property?

[Corona]

VBach37 wrote: I would definitely have kicked the workmen off my property as trespassers. As for the tree; lacking a legal recourse, I would find things of a similar nature to return the "favor." Perhaps cut down the whole tree so that it lands on his property, and then only dispose of the half on my property?

Just piss on his AC. :)

[Richard Owl Mirror]

I suppose I should recite how I handled each problem.

As for the tree trimming incident, I first had to calm my girlfriend down as this is the first home she ever owned and was quite miffed that someone had the audacity to touch her tree for any reason. I under stood the ramification of living in a suburban neighborhood.
It's a given that anything which crosses the property boundary is fair game.
Although I would have preferred the neighbor had asked me to please trim the tree instead of his haphazard method of cutting limbs off two feet from the trunk and leaving these stubs sticking out all over the one side.
I did not confront the neighbor and simply reshaped the tree as needed.

Now, the driveway incident, that's a whole different matter (as well as different house & neighbor)

Having come home from a dr's appointment to find my driveway blocked completely by the pile of sand and bricks,
actually having to drive across my lawn to enter my driveway.
I confronted my neighbor as he was conversing with the foreman in his front yard.
I did so in a mild manner without hostility because I assumed there had to be a really good excuse such as he had obtained permission from my wife without my knowledge.
This is where he told me the bit about, he had a brand new driveway and a perfect weed-free lawn and I did not.
I then complained out the resulting damage and he simply laughed it off and said nobody would notice the difference.
I promptly called the local police station and asked for an officer to come and witness what was occurring and make a report.
The officer came and talked with me, then my neighbor and upon returning to me said if I wanted to file a complaint I would need to come down to the station in person but that I should try and work things out with the neighbor.
Now comes the good part ..........
My (now ex) wife came home from work and tells me I was in the wrong to have cause trouble between the neighbor!
She actually told me I had to go and apologize to him !
Naturally I refused and so she went over and apologized for MY behavior and told him not to worry about fixing the driveway or lawn !

That incident, (among a few others) was the beginning of the end of our marriage.

[LostSoul3412]

Richard Owl Mirror wrote: I suppose I should recite how I handled each problem.

As for the tree trimming incident, I first had to calm my girlfriend down as this is the first home she ever owned and was quite miffed that someone had the audacity to touch her tree for any reason. I under stood the ramification of living in a suburban neighborhood.
It's a given that anything which crosses the property boundary is fair game.
Although I would have preferred the neighbor had asked me to please trim the tree instead of his haphazard method of cutting limbs off two feet from the trunk and leaving these stubs sticking out all over the one side.
I did not confront the neighbor and simply reshaped the tree as needed.

That's really all you can do. You're right that anything that crosses property is fair game, but he really should of gotten your consent first; however, this was an issue of manners, not an issue of legality.

Richard Owl Mirror wrote: Now, the driveway incident, that's a whole different matter (as well as different house & neighbor)

Having come home from a dr's appointment to find my driveway blocked completely by the pile of sand and bricks,
actually having to drive across my lawn to enter my driveway.
I confronted my neighbor as he was conversing with the foreman in his front yard.
I did so in a mild manner without hostility because I assumed there had to be a really good excuse such as he had obtained permission from my wife without my knowledge.
This is where he told me the bit about, he had a brand new driveway and a perfect weed-free lawn and I did not.
I then complained out the resulting damage and he simply laughed it off and said nobody would notice the difference.
I promptly called the local police station and asked for an officer to come and witness what was occurring and make a report.
The officer came and talked with me, then my neighbor and upon returning to me said if I wanted to file a complaint I would need to come down to the station in person but that I should try and work things out with the neighbor.

Good...

Richard Owl Mirror wrote: Now comes the good part ..........
My (now ex) wife came home from work and tells me I was in the wrong to have cause trouble between the neighbor!
She actually told me I had to go and apologize to him !
Naturally I refused and so she went over and apologized for MY behavior and told him not to worry about fixing the driveway or lawn !

That incident, (among a few others) was the beginning of the end of our marriage.

Not good.

Sorry to hear about your divorce, but I can understand why it happened...

[curisz]

Richard Owl Mirror wrote: I suppose I should recite how I handled each problem.

As for the tree trimming incident, I first had to calm my girlfriend down as this is the first home she ever owned and was quite miffed that someone had the audacity to touch her tree for any reason. I under stood the ramification of living in a suburban neighborhood.
It's a given that anything which crosses the property boundary is fair game.
Although I would have preferred the neighbor had asked me to please trim the tree instead of his haphazard method of cutting limbs off two feet from the trunk and leaving these stubs sticking out all over the one side.
I did not confront the neighbor and simply reshaped the tree as needed.

Now, the driveway incident, that's a whole different matter (as well as different house & neighbor)

Having come home from a dr's appointment to find my driveway blocked completely by the pile of sand and bricks,
actually having to drive across my lawn to enter my driveway.
I confronted my neighbor as he was conversing with the foreman in his front yard.
I did so in a mild manner without hostility because I assumed there had to be a really good excuse such as he had obtained permission from my wife without my knowledge.
This is where he told me the bit about, he had a brand new driveway and a perfect weed-free lawn and I did not.
I then complained out the resulting damage and he simply laughed it off and said nobody would notice the difference.
I promptly called the local police station and asked for an officer to come and witness what was occurring and make a report.
The officer came and talked with me, then my neighbor and upon returning to me said if I wanted to file a complaint I would need to come down to the station in person but that I should try and work things out with the neighbor.
Now comes the good part ..........
My (now ex) wife came home from work and tells me I was in the wrong to have cause trouble between the neighbor!
She actually told me I had to go and apologize to him !
Naturally I refused and so she went over and apologized for MY behavior and told him not to worry about fixing the driveway or lawn !

That incident, (among a few others) was the beginning of the end of our marriage.

Sounds to me like your ex wife was gettin it on with the neighbor and that to a certain extent he was throwing it in your face. I would have sued him, flat out. You would have won and he would have been stuck with court costs. Did you take pictures of the damage?

[Red Flag]

Some people just have no respect for others... I would of started a little hatfield and mccoy scenario. Although instead of using a gun I would use my foolproof **** Catapult. :lol:

[Richard Owl Mirror]

Red Flag wrote: Some people just have no respect for others... I would of started a little hatfield and mccoy scenario. Although instead of using a gun I would use my foolproof **** Catapult. :lol:

Actually, I let mother nature work to my benefit.
Late one night in the Fall, I spread 5 lbs of Clover seed in a huge pattern spelling out the word D I C K across his front lawn :lol:

That next spring when everyone awaits the crocus's and tulips blooming, I awaited the field of clover.

[Enoch]

Despite your wife's wishes, I would have filed a complaint immediately. I don't care if it causes tension between myself and my neighbor, my property is MY property. Even if it is not as well cared for as the neighbor's, it is still mine to care for or damage as I see fit.

I would have handled it as you did, up to a point. Talk to him first, then call the police out. After that, we differ. I would have then filed a complaint to show him I was serious. If, at that point, he had refused to pay for the damage I would have then filed suit against in him and let a judge decide.

I abhor lawsuits except as a last resort. And, if he was refusing to pay for the damage HE caused, then the lawsuit may be necessary.

Still...I can't believe your ex-wife acted that way. If that was a common occurance within your marriage, I am not surprised it started to hurt your marriage.

[Enoch]

Richard Owl Mirror wrote: Red Flag wrote: Some people just have no respect for others... I would of started a little hatfield and mccoy scenario. Although instead of using a gun I would use my foolproof **** Catapult. :lol:

Actually, I let mother nature work to my benefit.
Late one night in the Fall, I spread 5 lbs of Clover seed in a huge pattern spelling out the word D I C K across his front lawn :lol:

That next spring when everyone awaits the crocus's and tulips blooming, I awaited the field of clover.



THAT was funny!! :rofl:

[Superfly]

I am fuming after reading this, and it isn't even my lawn! :lol:

NO ONE WOULD NOTICE ANYWAY??????????????????

:arhhg:

What a jerk. Regarding the tree, there's not much you can do about the limbs, because they are on his property. The funny thing is this - every time someone drives by, and sees the "stumpy limbs" on his property, they will probably think the same way I did - "What a jerk that guy is to cut back such a pretty tree to save himself a little yardwork!"

As far as the driveway, I would have definately called the police because they were trespassing, and then I would have made the police stand there until all of the materials were removed from the driveway. In fact, I don't know how the law would look at this, but if it's on your property, I wonder if you couldn't have claimed it yourself - made him buy it all over again! :lol:

I would have then taken pictures of the damage, and sued him and probably won.

[TNBiologist]

1. Tree - I woudl have said something to the neighbor about his actions and informed him that a give me a heads up beofre doing something similar to that again. Legally the limbs were over his property and he can cut them. I probably would have found something of his that was in a similar situtation as yoru tree and removed part of it from your yard.

2. Driveway - I would have filed the police report reguardless of what my wife said. I would have also order the work off my property until the neighbor had made reparations for teh damage caused and I had a court order requiring him to remove the material from my driveway.

You need to maintain s decent relationship with yoru neighbors but that guy appears to be an *sshole and needs to know how far he can and cannot go.