Advice needed for a property line dispute...

You are right in stating that the two bounds may not be in the correct position - there is a lot of liability with only using two of them as you and I know. The only reason I have been running on pulling the string has been to try and save him some money; all his deeds and plans are land courted which leaves little room for discrepency in the bearings/distances. His neighbor could certainly contest the line he has flagged out, but could also contest any work a surveyor would conduct (and from the history and sounds of the guy, it is a decent possibility). The pulling string and basing off two bounds method is more of a warning that he is serious about getting the shit moved off his lot; most people would take it to heart and move the materials - the threat of sueing for damages to his property (killed grass, regrading) will hopefully wake him and have him come to his senses.

 

Subd good luck op

 

Can we see some pictures?

 

This, & you need to realize that 2 diff. surveys often get 2 diff results..

Ideally for you , is that you & neighbor could at least be civil enough to find & agree on another survey/surveyor, split the cost & abide & accept the results of the agreed upon survey, of course this has to be in writing

(which shouldn't be a problem for either) If it is found in your favor & neighbor renigs on agreement , you have no choice but to pursue it in civil court... good luck whichever way you go...

 

So you are willing to get a survey done to go to court but wont get one done to bring to your neighbor as a man and show as proof he is on your land. It makes total sense.

Might as well go get a few gallons of gas and have a bonfire with that wood and then use the dirt to build a wall between you and your neighbor.

 

why would the neighbor cover half the cost to stake someone elses property?

 

Why not. Its on his property...

 

Hire a surveyor

/thread

 

Smartest move...hire a dam good "Land use" attorney NOW....

Wife and I went through a similar situation when we purchased her folks house...Ink was not dry on the deed and neighbors son-in-law put up a post & rail fence across our driveway due to a misguided survey marker ( SOB moved it)....Luckily the lawyer that did our "Financing & deed work" was processing a NEW plat anyhow...and quickly filed a "quick deed' to force the issue....

It took us close to a year to claim OUR property and he kept putting the fence back in place until I accidently backed the 10-wheeler through it....I smiled but ended up paying $100 for replacement wood( it never went back up on property though )..

IF this material has been on the property for an extended amount of time,that attorney might tell you IT legally belongs to you now ....

Yes ,some will scream don't spend $$ on one BUT IF you are going to live there any amount of time...DO IT RIGHT ONCE..

 

WTF are you talking about?

And for all of you who are telling me to get a professional survey done, yes, I understand that would be an ideal thing to do but what happens if the neighbor then continues to ignore me? I'm out over $700 and still would have to pay for an attorney. I've gotten 4 quotes and they have ranged from a low of $650 for a single side up to a high of $1600 for the full 4 lines. Maybe surveying cost less in other parts of the country?

I'm not sure where some of you are getting the idea that I'm hiring a lawyer right now??

I also think some of you missed the point when I said this guy AVOIDS me, I have tried talking to him and either he hasn't been home when I've gone to his house or he knows it's me and won't answer the door.

I said it before but I also don't understand at all the posts of people who don't think this is an issue? Would you pay for a car with A/C and power windows and door locks and then be ok when the dealer gives you a manual with no A/C? Didn't think so.

As of now, I am mailing a letter to the neighbor, the town manager, and the owner of the property behind mine which this "neighbor" has been using as his dumping ground. In the letter I'm giving him 2 weeks to move the items on my property, if he doesn't move them I'm assuming his consent to use them and will start filling in my hole with his (my?) dirt. He paid for the wood so I don't feel like I can take it, but I do think I can push it all over onto his side of the line.

I appreciate all the helpful replies and I really hope what I've done is enough, I really don't want to have to hire a lawyer.

 

How long ago did you get the property? Around here, it's SOP for a survey to be done when the property changes owners. That survey is filed at the county clerk's office as part of the closing. That's the official property map - any survey that the homeowner has done is not official unless you re-file with the county.

Property map boundaries are available from the clerk's office for a nominal fee. I think mine cost me a whopping 10 bucks. That's where I got mine, and that's what the cop based his decision on.

So, make a copy of the property map. Then, write a letter, asking the neighbor to move his stuff. Attach the copy to this. If you really feel it's necessary, you can send it by registered mail to ensure the neighbor has it (no "I never got it" B.S.). In the letter, ask the neighbor to discuss it in person if he'd like clarification. If you get no response, then you bring in the authorities (cops, county clerk's office, etc.) for resolution. No need for expensive surveys or lawyers.

 

the answer is:

get a survey
go to court

that is the answer, you are a landowner now and you have to drop 8th grade mentality
and step up and exercise your rights in the legal system, and that is it. period. otherwise
this guy and everyone else will just come and take shit from you...are you gonna live like that ?

Once you have the survey, then no one can question you. save a shit-ton of trouble and frustration.



I live in Mass and have 100 acres in Maine and you are darn tootin I have all my surveys
done and stakes in the ground. My land, no one elses. Anyone can use my land but leave no
shit behind and don't kill anything.

 

Get a new survey
Go to court
Build a fence

 

I live on 30 acres way out in the mountains...and I have a copy of my survey right at hand...I know all my neighbors and the biggest problems so far is logging right at the property boundary.

Just send your neighbor a copy of the survey and a request to move his woodpile and dirt within 30 days of receipt of the letter, send it certified with return receipt requested. DO NOTHING for 30 days. Repeat.

Then think about taking action. Since the dirt and woodpile are doing you no actual harm where they are, immediate resolution in NOT necessary. No need to make a long term enemy over a minor issue.

I had this exact same problem in a house in Ohio, the only difference after the survey is that I had more grass to mow

 

people who say get a new survey are right. You have no real ground to stand on if you move the stuff and the neighbor gets a survey and you are wrong. Welcome to the wonderful world of home/land ownership. Also I saw it mentioned but only once, you need to get his stuff off your property and establish use limits or you could lose the land to him or his later kin claiming it. From the sound of how this guys if acting this does not seem like a far fetched scenario. My inlaws have to deal with that same crap all the time here on their land. It is always the same bs with people saying, "oh i thought this was BLM land." Funny how they always set up picnic tables and crap and leave them. I have to commend you on trying to work things out with your neighbor but it sounds like he is going to make it difficult no matter what from what you have described. I know it sounds like a lot of money to get a survey and have a letter written from a lawyer but weigh that against losing some of your property of damage to it by the pests and rodents living in crap wood piles over time. I will bet that as soon as this guy get a letter from a lawyer and sees you are serious he will fold. These types know it will cost you some money to make anything happen and hope you will give up. Stay strong, be smart, document everything.

 

we had someone try to squat on the land in Maine. called Sheriff, he said show me the map, show me the lines, only then did he evict the squatter.

 

I'm back again with another update. I found a surveyor I could afford and had the line surveyed last week, it was pretty damn close to what I had already marked out, actually for most of it I had been a little bit to the inside of what my actual line is. I went away Thursday and came back today to find the guy had taken down the markers on the front half of the line! I go over to confront him, guess he didn't see me coming in time to run inside, and explain the facts to him. He still disagrees with me and tries to tell me how him and the previous owner "ran a line" from corner to corner, but he has never actually hired anybody to do it.

Now, before anybody tells me to go to court, I can't, that just isn't an option and I just don't have the money for it. My only thought now is just put a fence up along my line. I called the town and they are no help, they said this is between me and him and there's no cause for police involvement. I'm assuming though that if I put a fence up and he either destroys or otherwise damages it i CAN get the police involved.

 

Put the fence 6" to 1' ON your property , DO NOT put it ON the property line

Then it is all yours and if he vandalizes it , you have a case

ON the property line , it is 1/2 his

Document everything you do with pictures

If the surveyors set actual markers , it is illegal to remove them , flagging or stakes is not ( at least here )

 

removing a survey marker here is also illegal but hard to prove and at best would be a slap on the wrist.....Unfortunatley it costs money to defend your property but thats the joys of ownership....I would say you might want to have a fence put up, 6" on your side. If he takes it down he should be liable but this is all stuff you should talk to a lawyer about. Even if his stuff is on your side i wouldn't recomend removing it as you very well could be liable yourself...Again, i'm only suggesting, your in a different state with potentially different laws. Ask the surveyor you used, he should be able to tell you a little more regarding the specific laws of your state....

 

Do this. However check your areas rules about fences. I know if my parents wanted to build one it has to be 8" from the property line at least