Neighbors

[6sunset6]

What do you think of this. We had a hugh bad storm a month a go. The local utility says the worst ever. I was away . I came home to A LOT of broken trees on my property. I have worked every day doing something to pick up and take down. About 3pm today I hear a big chipper running on the other side of my property. maybe 1000 feet from the house. I wander over there and there are 3 guys chipping away. Now the property line is a stone wall.
The county owns 25' on the other side of the stone wall and then another parcel with a house. The stone wall is 800 ft long. So they cut down around 5 trees , big ones, right in and around the stone wall. Both sides of the wall and drop them over the wall, on my side of course. My side is woods the county side the other property owner made lawn right up to the wall. So I ask them where's the boss, cause its' not them. Boss is gone they are just chipping. I explain that someone should have asked me. Turns out the property owner hired the work done. She came out and after I expained why I was there she said "Whats the problem, there no lawn there." I was calm till then. She never did understand that she should have asked. I guess I get firewood with out having to drop trees. But still she should have asked. It was not even her property.

 

[dave1949]

That sure wasn't neighborly. So, the trees along the wall are either yours or the county's? Is that the situation? In rural areas, isn't it fairly rare to cut trees on or near a property line, stone wall or not, - even if they were her trees?
Dave.

 

[2manyrocks]

There are definite issues with cutting trees on her side and letting them fall on you. Wrecking the stone wall is another issue, too. Smart aleck attitude tops it off.


Kinda ticks me off reading about it.

 

[Oleozz]

It was explained to me that in this state (Pa) you can cut every other line tree down. I had a neighbor do that to me and I guess it was legal.
When we had some trees timbered the forester who was handling the work would not get close to the line, he didn't want any controversy if the property boundaries weren't quite correct and I was thankful for that.

 

[LBrown59]

That sure wasn't neighborly. So, the trees along the wall are either yours or the county's? Is that the situation? In rural areas,
isn't it fairly rare to cut trees on or near a property line, stone wall or not, - even if they were her trees?
Dave.

Depends on who owns the property the trees are on .

 

[6sunset6]

Well , Here is the next installment. She calls me , says she will remove all the trees on my property that were cut. I said no , I don't want anyone on my property and no one is going to take any trees away. She went nuts and started cursing me on the phone. I hung up. She called back I did not answer. She left a message saying I was not a nice person. Oh boy.
My wife came home and before she heard the story heard the first phone call.
That was not good either. Some how this is all my fault. I think I will just go get the wood from my side of the line and bring it to another neighbor across the road who just had bypass surgery and is worried about next years wood.
Lets see what everyone has to say about that. Not you guys, I mean the neighbors.
Just to be perfectly clear, not one of the trees were hers.

 

[Stimw]

Take pics and document everything you can, just in case it gets ugly. Would have been great to have pics of them working on your property.

 

[Soundguy]

had similar happen at my farm.. there is a 25' ROW road row at the front of my property.. at the edge of that there was a small margin of trees on a 5' strip befor ethe neighbors property. he hired a tree trimmer to cut MY trees down.. I went out there and they had mangled 500' of the front of my property that way. they were starting on 500' of my neighbors property ( guy across from us has 1000' on the road.. etc.. ) I had to threaton the owner and tree guy with a lawsuit to stop him..

soundguy

 

[stravis]

So the neighbor hires someone to clean up storm damage and somehow they cross her property line, the county property and your stone boundary into your property and cut down trees leaving them on the ground? What was their point? We're they wanting to take some more lumber or were they in her way or something? I'm not following.

Either way, it sounds like a neighbor lady made an assumption in regards to your property. That is never a good idea. But then again, I STRONGLY believe in property rights, probably to a fault and would have handled it the same way you did. Both the initial contact and the phone call.

 

[Mousefield]

About 20 years ago, before we moved to the property, our (now former) neighbor had a logging company in to log his property. The neighbor did the surveying of the property line for the loggers. Problem was they logged about 300 ft onto our property, which is 900 ft wide. Logger said the best trees come from our place. So had our place surveyed and then off to the lawyers. Finally got settled just before it went to court. Got some money but we would have rather had the trees.
Good neighbor's are hard to come by it seems.

 

[Thomas]

You handle that very well Bob.
The other land owner should feel lucky there not handing $$'s to you for there boo-boo..least I hope other land owner had the crew clean the mess also chunk up the wood for you.

 

[MarkV]

So the way I read it she had the counties trees cut down on county property and then had them tossed on to your property. Given her attitude I would call the county.

MarkV

 

[2manyrocks]

Agree with other poster to make lots of pictures.

If you think it warrants it, have your lawyer send her a letter to stay off your land.

She appears to want to make her view pretty in her eyes regardless of who owns the property. Do you have any ugly yellow school buses to park for her viewing pleasure?

 

[SensibleNick]

First things first.

Make sure your missus understands the problem.... and THEN sort out the other trouble. What's done is done, but all things at home should be sorted first.

 

[6sunset6]

You are right about that. I am working on it. I think it's ok now. With my wife.
I am not to concerned about the neighbor.

 

[mostly_gas]

Had a neighbor start clearing My woods a few years ago. Wife asked him to stop but he didn't. She talked to his wife and the damage finally stopped.

 

[mustangsallysdad]

What do you think of this. We had a hugh bad storm a month a go. The local utility says the worst ever. I was away . I came home to A LOT of broken trees on my property. I have worked every day doing something to pick up and take down. About 3pm today I hear a big chipper running on the other side of my property. maybe 1000 feet from the house. I wander over there and there are 3 guys chipping away. Now the property line is a stone wall.
The county owns 25' on the other side of the stone wall and then another parcel with a house. The stone wall is 800 ft long. So they cut down around 5 trees , big ones, right in and around the stone wall. Both sides of the wall and drop them over the wall, on my side of course. My side is woods the county side the other property owner made lawn right up to the wall. So I ask them where's the boss, cause its' not them. Boss is gone they are just chipping. I explain that someone should have asked me. Turns out the property owner hired the work done. She came out and after I expained why I was there she said "Whats the problem, there no lawn there." I was calm till then. She never did understand that she should have asked. I guess I get firewood with out having to drop trees. But still she should have asked. It was not even her property.

Go to or contact your county or municipal courthouse to see which office you need to speak with about properly and legally posting your land and then conspicuously do so. That is the first thing any responsible landowner should do when they acquire a parcel of any size.

 

[teg]

I would make her wood line as ugly as possible for them to look at ....with multiple "Posted" and "No Trespassing" signs/tree... as many as you can afford. Good for you for helping your other neighbor with the wood... but sorry you had to get the wood this way.

Short story, my dumb new neighbor cut down a beautiful 30' x 8" dogwood tree in a natural area on my property. Told him to "never come on my property". Trying to help , he throws grass seed in my natural area, again "never come on my property"... I planted a couple of replacement trees and when the grass was getting to a point that I was going to hit it with roundup... brain-e-ack neighbor decides to help again... Mows the grass AND the new trees... :mur: since this is a family site - I'll just say that he got an ear full :ashamed: since I caught him in the act - pretty sure he got the point. Moral of the story, make it absolutely clear to them with posted signs - they might try and help you again!?!?

 

[Taylortractornut]

I have a friend that had a really nice set of white oaks and some nice large red cedars. He had a neighbors that was havining his place logged by a specialty logger. The neighbor came over and told my fried that he would like to buy thoes trees. My friend told him that they werent for sale. Then the neighbor badgered my friend about some of little scrubby pines and some wild plums that were 10 feet on the inside of my friends fence. Telling him that his wife was allergic to them and thought they were ugly. This guy was an older fella that had a big money job and kinda forced his way.

My friend came home to see the top of his walnut tree falling and heard a saw running, My friend got on his tractor and went to see the neighbor and his son cutting up his white oaks the walnut trees. The pines were already down to the stumps and they had removed the whole tree excepts stumps. The law was called and the sheriff tried to get my friend just to accept what happened and let the neighbor keep his logs.

M y friend and I took alot of pictures and they had court a few weeks later. The judge ruled that the nieghbors owed 300 dollars each for all 12 or so plum tree stumps, and 950 each for all the 20 pine trees, and market value for the walnut from base to limbs 2 inches and up. and the white oaks were also sold a custom market prices and plus what the tops would chip as.

Then my friend moved all his old farm junk next to the line about 50 feet from it so the neighbor has to look at it daily lol.

 

[RoyJackson]

...
M y friend and I took alot of pictures and they had court a few weeks later. The judge ruled that the nieghbors owed 300 dollars each for all 12 or so plum tree stumps, and 950 each for all the 20 pine trees, and market value for the walnut from base to limbs 2 inches and up. and the white oaks were also sold a custom market prices and plus what the tops would chip as.

Then my friend moved all his old farm junk next to the line about 50 feet from it so the neighbor has to look at it daily lol.

Good for your friend!!
The only things different I would have done is insist on those stumps being removed and filed criminal charges against that neighbor (grand theft). Maybe that high dollar job wouldn't have lasted too long if he was a felon.