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Do you know where I can find this information? The city is telling me that it is 5 ft and I have plans to, maybe, build a detached garage and I called and asked them that question before this whole mess came to the surface.
Ok! Thanks everyone, I really appreciate the input.
Poll: What would you do?
A) Walk away and eat the 2k, start over finding a new lot and a new builder.
B) Sign an agreement to let the sprinklers stay, but giving me the right to do whatever I want to them and giving me the right to have them removed at his expense at any time I change my mind.
C) "Sell" (or actually have the developer charge him to move the lot line and credit me) the 10 foot strip:
If so, should my bottom line price be:
1) What I paid per square foot ($2.5)
2) What he paid per square foot for his lot ($5)
3) Something in the middle ($3)
Edit: D) Tell the neighbor to move his sprinklers
I would go with C-3.
I see no need to walk away. To me the setback and the sprinkler encroachment sound like nothing more than innocent mistakes (hey, they happen), and it sounds like the neighbor and the developer are amenable to working it out.
"B" would make your neighbors very unsettled, because they would never know if they would lose the sprinklers they paid for. And "D" would do nothing but **** them off, given that they paid for the sprinklers, and then would have to pay again to have them removed. Yes, you have the right to make them do it; but sometimes a little give and take are better than demanding your rights.
It would be one thing if you really wanted the land, but it sounds like you wouldn't miss the 10 foot strip. As long as you come to a legally binding agreement that suits everyone, you are likely to have good relations with your neighbor . . . which is very important.
I found myself in a similar position to your neighbor, when I built a driveway extension and accidentally encroached a few feet onto my neighbor's land. The neighbors didn't care, but I wanted to make it right so there wouldn't be any issues down the road. I offered to buy the land, but they dragged their feet, until finally they moved away with the issue unaddressed. I brought it up with the new buyers, and we came to an agreement for me to buy the land upon which I had encroached. I had to have a survey done, and get the change recorded by the county; but it's all legal now. (To set a price, I looked at all vacant land for sale within 2 miles of my house, figured out the average price per square foot that was being asked, and offered that amount. Plus, I paid all related expenses. It was pure profit for the neighbors.)
On a different note, I too am curious as to what the developer/builder said about why your neighbor's house doesn't meet setback rules? That is a pretty big mistake. I'm surprised the city "passed" it -- aren't things normally checked at various points during the building process?
I have a stupid question. Do the set backs count the A/C unit? All of my math has assumed they did. I was counting it as part of "the house". If we are only counting the actual house I think it meets the 5 foot, but I don't think it would meet the 7 foot.
I doubt the setback applies to anything but the foundation.
I went and took a look at it over my lunch hour. The house itself is exactly 5 feet from the line. The A/C unit extends about 3 feet from the edge of the house, so there is about a two foot distance between it and the property line. That is the gap that, if I were to build a fence, a lawn mower would not fit through.
Looking at the codes for my city/county, it appears that the setbacks are 5 foot for the zoning we are in, so the setback is being met, technically, and barely.
The neighborhood I am moving into is very friendly. Having a good relationship with my neighbors (this guy is my only real neighbor, the rest of my property borders people's back yards or else conservation land) is important to me, so I don't want to just say, "$15/square foot or else get your crap off my property".
I plan on living here (Sioux Falls, SD) for a long time.
Thanks so much!
This is the key point. You can have problems with people in life, then get away and go home. That includes work, the gym, social groups etc.
However if the person you have a problem with is a neighbor, you will never feel the peace and tranquility you need to recharge every day.
Now this comment is not meant to imply you should pay him to take the land off your hands, but it would be wise for you both(and wives if applicable) to come to a mutually agreed upon deal that neither feels is unfair. He cannot cling to the notion it isn't his fault he thought he owned this property and expect for it pennies on the dollar, but neither should you be greedy and try to get full market value for it either.
Compromise would be the order of the day for this situation, and any others situations where your neighbors are concerned. You never want to get to the point of having a conflict which might some day lead to a story like this;
Ok! Thanks everyone, I really appreciate the input.
Poll: What would you do?
A) Walk away and eat the 2k, start over finding a new lot and a new builder.
B) Sign an agreement to let the sprinklers stay, but giving me the right to do whatever I want to them and giving me the right to have them removed at his expense at any time I change my mind.
C) "Sell" (or actually have the developer charge him to move the lot line and credit me) the 10 foot strip:
If so, should my bottom line price be:
1) What I paid per square foot ($2.5)
2) What he paid per square foot for his lot ($5)
3) Something in the middle ($3)
Edit: D) Tell the neighbor to move his sprinklers
JS
You keep wanting a pound of flesh (pay me, discount my purchase, etc,.) when you have said your lot is so large it really does matter. My advice is move the lot line to where the neighbor's sod/sprinkler's are which as I understand is not enough to allow him to build anything along that side. Let them figure out how to move the lot line and they absorb the cost. You stay above it and be Mr. Nice Guy.
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