Law regarding planting on property line.

[fried1765]

So did you plant 4 feet or 4 inches from the property line?

I don't think he can make you move the plants but if they are 4 inches from the property line then there can always be a dispute on the exact location of the line and 4 inches is not much. My understanding for my area is that he would be able to trim the shrubs to the property line. Trimming the plants to the property line with the plants 4 inches from the line is going to look odd and may not be healthy for the shrubs.

If the shrubs are four feet from the line that makes things a bit better.

It is a moot point now but you might have been able to claim the property since you were maintaining it with a adverse possession claim which is not easy to do but possible. This is what the neighbor is worried about. Not a good sign that he jumped to that conclusion and started a property line peeing contest when he just moved in. Sad.

Good Luck,
Dan

My property has 7 abutters.
3 of them throw their brush-grass clippings over the line.
2 have structures well inside the 25' legal offset minimum.
1 did have a small shed that was over the line, but it deteriorated, and the owner removed it.
Perhaps the theory is: oh he can't see it from his house,... so it is OK.
I am an old guy, so .... I just shut up, and suck it up.

 

[PJSprog]

"claim jumper"?...right out the gate he says that?...sounds like a lovely guy...

My thoughts exactly. Sounds like you either need to try to mend that faulty start, or deal with an unfriendly neighbor for as long as you are both there. If he's not interested, though, there's not much you can do on your own. Sounds like you've already tried to explain the situation. If he's unwilling to see from your perspective, then it is what it is.

And no, it's not likely that he can make you move your shrubbery. As other have already noted, though, he can trim off anything hanging over his side of the line.

 

[zzvyb6]

Well here's what can happen to either side. My neighbor a few driveways down has had a subdivision lot owner encroaching on her property for quite a few years. Even parked trailers, boats and junk on it. Pulled out the fence posts and the wire and had mowed and fertilized a great deal of her land. Next a new neighbor moves in and they were requested to stop the encroachment (to no avail).

She talked with me about what to do. I saw the clearly installed survey makers, older concrete fence post pits (with poles removed) and went to town. Differential the GPSed the survey stakes to check with her deed (right on). Sighted the lines, dug post holes and put up a wire fence. Problem solved. Neighbor asked who did the survey. I replied "Lewis & Clark". Now everybody is happy !

But look at the amount of encroachment (25+ feet in some cases). Enough to decrease the size of her property enough to remove the agricultural zoning requirement from the township of 5+ acres.

In Michigan its called "acquiescence". You give up property by not formally protesting (in writing) the "adverse possession" of your land by a neighboring property owner.

 

[adventure bob]

In CO setbacks are by zone, where I live is considered rural and for the size of my property we have a 10ft easement to property lines for "enduring plantings" i.e. trees and shrubs, and 50ft for buildings. Interestingly enough Colorado is a "fence out" state meaning that if you don't want my animals grazing in your yard, you have to build the fence. Gotta love laws that were written when everything was open range.

 

[PJSprog]

My Wife's Grandmother had that happen several years ago, too, Bill. Neighbor removed a 40-year-old fence and erected a new one 8 feet over with No Trespassing signs all over it. It affected three of his neighbors, all of whom took him to court. He had to remove and replace all of the fences in their rightful places, but everyone was out thousands in legal fees over the years it took to get resolved. Last week, we got a bill from the surveyor for another $611 (as estate heirs, we're now responsible for a part of that debt, even though that part of the property is no longer ours).

Fortunately, that a--hole moved a couple months ago, and the property was recently sold.

 

[BrokeFarmerJohn]

I would hate a neighbor like that and I think border wars is totally stupid.

Neighbor doesn't even have a right to ask you to move your shrubs 4ft in your property, it's your property.

I guess the guy who lived in my house before me turned into this guy, totally border wars, the neighbor to my right are an older retired couple and they told me this story a few times, only way to get back to the back side of there property (cut off by a creek) is to drive down my gravel drive to my barn and cut over and the old man said they couldn't do that anymore. when I bought my place it was 6ft tall of black raspberry bushes and saplings from the 6 or 7 years of not mowing it, I mowed it all down for them and have been mowing it ever since, it takes me 15 mins every two weeks lol.

Jane is the wife and she was worried and even asked me about the dandelions in her yard, I guess the guy across the street from them got mad at them for infesting his yard with there dandelions because they don't treat for them, guess that guy is hard to get along with also lol. I said I don't care because I don't treat anyway, if the grass is cut I'm happy, I have more important things to worry about than border wars and dandelions.

Neighbors to the other side barely cut there grass and when they do it looks bad lol, sometimes they cut further on me, most the time I cut further on them just to keep my lines decently straight on the front yard.

Love thy neighbor

In my back yard it would be impossible to keep everyone out unless I put up fences, neighbor 3 houses down has 12 kids, there's constantly kids cutting across back yards instead of waking on the street, the neighbor who I bought my house off of drives his quad threw mine and my neighbors back yards traveling to another property he owns that he has cattle on, so he stays off the roads. 4-5 times a day someone is cutting across.

 

[RandyT]

My Wife's Grandmother had that happen several years ago, too, Bill. Neighbor removed a 40-year-old fence and erected a new one 8 feet over with No Trespassing signs all over it. It affected three of his neighbors, all of whom took him to court. He had to remove and replace all of the fences in their rightful places, but everyone was out thousands in legal fees over the years it took to get resolved. Last week, we got a bill from the surveyor for another $611 (as estate heirs, we're now responsible for a part of that debt, even though that part of the property is no longer ours).

Fortunately, that a--hole moved a couple months ago, and the property was recently sold.

Had a guy that lived next to my aunt, that moved the fence three feet., and cut down all the trees in the old fencerow, and my aunt took him to court, and $50,000 later lost her three feet. And they filed suit within a couple months of the fence being moved. Then the guy sold the property and moved back to Pennsylvania.

 

[TheMan419]

Ugh, I'd sure try to mend that fence. Not that you did anything wrong, but talk to the guy. You don't want a boarder war.

We have one parcel next to us that just sold and the couple that bought intends to build. They came over after they bought and introduced themselves. Whenever I see them out working on the property I go over and chat. Since they will be my only neighbors I want to be cordial with them.

We even talked about where the property line was as we are in the process of putting up a fence. Last thing I want to do is redo it and/or piss of the neighbors.

I cannot imagine living where there was a boarder war going on.

In direct answer to your question, in most states it is as others have said. If your tree branch is over my property line I can cut it back to the line. If that kills the tree, not my problem.

That said if I were in that situation I would talk to the neighbor and see what arrangements we could come up with that would satisfy us both. Life is too short!

 

[oldballs]

Having lived here for over forty years, I've seen a lot of people come and go. Some have been great and some have been a-holes. I try to get along without using the police or the lawyers or the surveyors. So far, that has worked for me. This was really rural forty years ago, but is now rural suburban, but that hasn't seemed to make a difference as to what kind of neighbors one has.

 

[Ford850]

OP - It sounds like the new neighbor's beef is that you mow "a mower's swath" on his property. Since you planted the shrubs 4 inches from the line, and with the shrub's growth they are no doubt much wider now, how far are you actually mowing into the neighbor's property? Easiest solution is to stop mowing on their property (if in fact that's the issue).