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You never know how people will react. Not the situation but has to do with boundaries and fence. Shows you how unreasonable people can be. Best to correct it now rather than wait.
Neighbor and his wife are unusual individuals. In the time we've known them, they've been involved in several lawsuits and countless family dramas.
Which is why we didn't make a big deal over the fence.
But it might be a big deal when it comes time for us to sell.
We could avoid that, by getting the situation straightened out now. It could be that this is the best time to get the fence moved. It is certainly the time the neighbors would be the most motivated.
We had a survey done when we moved in. It clearly shows the property line corner at that pipe. The fence is about a foot and half this side of that marker.
It is clearly their fence. The same fence surrounds their entire back, side, and part of the front yard.
But if a foot or so is no big deal to us, is it a big deal to most buyers?
It would be a big deal to me if I was the one that wanted to buy your property.
I have read that (in some states) an encroacher does not acquire rights to property if the encroachment is by permission.
In such a case, sending a certified letter (and keeping a copy) stating that you are aware of the encroachment and that it is with your permission although permission can be revoked at any time.
I suppose for good measure such a letter could be sent to the listing agent.
Doing this properly might require a consultation with a lawyer but does not require a lawsuit.
IIRC, the OP no longer lives in NC. Everything below is NOT legal advice, and an attorney should be consulted if legal advice is what you seek.
Encroachments are a 2-way street. If you are the encroacher, you don't really care until the encroachee does. But it is the encroachee who holds all the power.
In theory, the new Buyer of your neighbor's property will get a survey. That survey will show the encroachment. That Buyer CAN insist the encroachment be fixed, because their title insurance won't cover any action from that encroachment. That Buyer themselves can require the Seller the fix the fence before they close.
If you were in NC, you could surely have an attorney do a "fence encroachment agreement" as bolded above:
"I know it's here, and I'm OK with it now but I make no guarantee I won't make you fix the problem at any time, or anybody you may sell to in the future."
For example .... you don't get along with new Buyer and tell him to move his fence. Even if he doesn't get a survey, he can't say "But I didn't know".
Whatever you decide to do, do it now. It's really best to get it settled now while the property is for sale. The seller has a bigger incentive to make things right and it will create less of a problem for you later. Imagine being the buyer and having a survey done only to find that the fence is on the neighbors property. The neighbor needs to make this right. If he decides not to do so now, take the fence down. Tell him ahead of time you will be removing it.
Obviously all of the above is predicated on you knowing definitively that the fence is on your property.
OP--you may decide to sell your house one day. It might be a big deal to your future buyer.
Sorry, but the time to consult an attorney was when your neighbor basically blew you off. As you now know, there is no way you should have permitted this. What’s yours is yours and what’s his is his, unless you give yours away like you have done.
A year ago, our neighbors replaced an old wooden fence, but built it on our side of what appears to be the property line. (Pipe with red on top stuck into ground at corner where four lots meet.
I discussed this with him as he was setting the posts and he said he did it this way due to where the trees are and that his wife would have a fit if he didn't enclose a strip of their back yard.
I tried to persuade him to move the fence posts back as it could prove troublesome when it came time to sell, and he replied that they didn't intend to sell, but if and when the time came, he would just say that it is our fence.
Not wanting to get into a big fight over a fence built a foot or two onto our lot, we let it go.
Well, now they plan to sell the summer. I doubt the buyer will object to a fence enclosing part of our lot.
But should we?
Should we just let it go and handle any problems that come up when we sell?
Should we get an attorney to write a letter telling them they need to move the fence back to their own lot before selling?
Thanks for time and thought in responding to this.
I am a lawyer admitted to practice only in New York. If the facts are the say you are I would file a Notice of Pendency on his property AND sue to compel removal of the encroachment. You have leverage and that would give him all the incentive in the world to remove it. But consult your attorney; I cannot rely on the particulars of the description of a state of affairs that may have occurred in any state.
There are a number of episodes of "Judge Judy" dealing with this. Get a survey done first to establish your property line. If you can get his statement in writing about his saying it is your fence, that would be very helpful. In reality, he needs to move the fence. If they move why would his wife care?
Good luck!
LOL....I love the Judge....most of the time.
OPs first mistake "Not wanting to get into a big fight over a fence built a foot or two onto our lot, we let it go."
There are a number of episodes of "Judge Judy" dealing with this. Get a survey done first to establish your property line. If you can get his statement in writing about his saying it is your fence, that would be very helpful. In reality, he needs to move the fence. If they move why would his wife care?
Good luck!
The trouble with that is it only does any good if recorded on both parcel's land records. That can create problems of its own.
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