Another goal of this note is to provide policy recommendations for the future development of tree law in California. While repairing is an option sometimes, although we usually do not recommend it, this article is based on the notion that your fence has fully failed, needs replacement immediately, and your neighbor refuses to pay for it. Code 841, but my fear is that after having a letter certified to her, she will either ignore it or refuse after the 30 days. unless soil passive resistance is included. I just feel like Im trying to be very diplomatic about this but if the neighbor shoots me down or ignores me again my only thought process is to get a surveyor out here and give me the exact property line. So now HOA is advising me to serve her with the 30 days notice and if she still refuses to then take her to small claims to have the judge order her to agree to the fence replacement and payment. Code in most cities is as follows: retaining wall can't be on the property line because the neighbor who is at the lower elevation owns the wall and has to have enough room at the top for proper drain lines. If you are not satisfied with the final product or it isnt what you had agreed upon prior to it being built, then you should not pay! The neighbors called and threatened to sue us. What happens then? How do I keep the gap clear or how can I get my neighbor to allow a new fence on the property line (since he has 2 large dogs it cant come down without his participation)? Labor to build a retaining wall costs from $50 to $75 per hour. This is due to the fact that the fence is not connected to another fence in your neighbors yard, therefore enclosing it. The neighbor wants me to replace the fence and pay for it 100%, saying this is not a boundary fence. I have offered to help with the labor and split the cost 50/50. Plot Plan showing the location, extent, and height of the retaining wall in relation to any building structure, pool, property lines and public utility easements. In summary, I WOULD NOT pay your neighbor a dime, as he not only replaced a fence that didnt need to be replaced in the first place, but he did not follow the proper steps in order to be able to collect half the costs fro0k you via the courts. or Contact us Here. Secondly, I wouldnt pay them a dime if I were you. upper soil grade). Or is it apparent the uphill neighbor backfilled their property for one reason or another which created the need for the wall? Would we lose in small claims court? What should I do? Not your property, not your fence. Some retaining walls are structurally necessary, others are purely for looks. Yes, there are no provisions in the statute to account for one neighbors actions, i.e. But over the years, their sprinklers, trees planted too close and their own children caused the fence to be constantly in a state of disrepair. Ok here goes I understand your frustration with your neighbor after stating you would cover all the costs, for him to complain about a vinyl fence. If so, can I put up planks on my side, once its built? Luckily, state law provides some guidance when it comes to fences, property lines, tree trimming, and more. We both want to replace it. Simple as that. border: 2px solid #cfcfcf; Seems like a stalling tactic to avoid paying for it. The Keystone Legacy Block (6 high x 16 wide x 10 deep) product is limited to 3 feet in height or six blocks in height total. ( I had 300 to 500 in mind) He mentioned that was very nice and most neighbors would not do this. We cant afford the cost for the fence that he wants($14k). Can she insist on a new fence and I have to pay for half? 2. what if my dog runs off? lower soil grade) to the finish grade at the top of the wall (i.e. Also, I dont agree that this information only benefits the contractor, IT DOES NOT! Seems your neighbor would be reaping the rewards with no out of pocket costs for him. The second and third reasons only apply if the fence needed to be replaced in the first place, but I will touch on them anyway. I have a fence that is in need of replacement. Do you need a French drain on your property? Hi Annie, thanks for the great question! They had a 5 day notice from time of the written letter to the fence being repaired. Should you have any questions, please stop by the public counter of the Building permit section of the City Hall. He should have sent the notice to you 30 days prior to the construction of the fence and should have sent it to you certified mail with the return receipt requested. All other retaining wall construction will require a separate Building Permit. Seemed fair. The neighbor verbally agreed to this via texts and I sent quotes via texts. Only 43 of that fence serves me, and then my gate encloses my yard. Right now, we have a block wall fence between my neighbors house and ours. You can state you will fight them in court. I do not think this qualifies for a Good neighbor fence. The neighbor is bullying you in order to make money off you. This year the fence is leaning towards our house and part of the fence is on the ground, my wife got 3 bids and has contacted a contractor to build a new fence she sent a letter to the gentleman to tell him we are going to replace the fence and He sent us an e mail and I quote as for sending me a bill for my portion of the fence, since I personaly did not agree to participate in the replacement there for I will not pay anything. However they want to put a new retaining concrete wall and then put the fence on top. They want us to pay for 1/2 of the repair. My partner and I ran across this different website and decided to take a look around. I informed him that I already have a contractor in place but he was insistent that I use who they subcontract through and ordered me not to proceed any further. She was under the impression that HOA would cover the cost, but after kindly explaining this isnt the case she has grown more difficult. Its an aesthetic preference that she wants a brand new fence. The fence has deteriorated and a section has fallen over. I am willing to pay for fixing the fence as needed but it does not need to be replaced with a new fence. I live on a hill and a fence that is about 30 years old exists between my neighbor and me. Please let everyone know if you have any ideas as to another route to take. Now the neighbor wants the planks that my husband nailed to be removed. You bring up replacement due to aesthetics and upgrading a fence? We need to have some stucco repair to the side of our house in that area and would like to be able to get in there periodically to weed, etc. We have a plant bed with a little two inch wooden retaining wall on our property to keep the soil in place. In order to interpret this building code section correctly, a clear understanding of the following terms is essential: Retained Wall Height is the vertical distance measured from the bottom of the footing to the finish grade at the top of the wall (i.e. We do not want, or have a need for this new fence. The law becomes a little unclear in instances such as yours but the major factor which is going to decide who is legally responsible is whether or not you have a fence around any part of your yard that is connected to this fence that he wants you to pay half of to replace? Although you didnt follow the steps necessary under the CA Good Neighbor Law, if it were me I would go ahead and take him to small claims court. That 32 of fence is behind a large hedge and is not even visible from my property. He then re does his 3 sides but not our shared said nor buy material for it or even ask us to go half for the cheaper material. There is a brick wall between me and my neighbor. What is hus responsibility and should I bear any ? when we started doing the siding work. Fence it up and intact. No, this will not cause any issues whatsoever. The new neighbor had a dog and wished to build a fenced-in yard, the 1st on our side of the street. 30 kip for strength limit states. Do we owe anyliability and responsibility to the neighbors? First off, the biggest one is if everything you say is correct, there was not a valid reason to replace the fence in the first place. My neighbor fence between the driveways in California needs to be replaced from wind damage last December. He does not live in the area. I hope the business property has to clean up and replace it. Since the pandemic lumber prices have soared through the roof and while labor and material costs used to be similar, they are no longer. The neighbor paying (if you are not splitting the cost) would have the right to insist that the good side be pointed towards his yard. Do your neighbors not agree on fixing the fence, what contractor to use, or the price? My relationship with this neighbor is not good. I am not certain if I have any legal obligation to do anything here. The Folsom Municipal Code adopts, by reference, the 1997 Uniform Building Code (UBC). The other 400ft i f that line of fence is livestock open space fencing. I bought my house last year and my neighbors decide to redo their fence . The term good neighbor just refers to the style of the fence. Unfortunately there is a gap of 10 to 12 inches between the fences and all kinds of weeds, bushes and trees are growing inside. Cindy, I am sorry to inform you but your neighbor is correct in this situation. Where on earth this belief ever came from is unknown, but it is widely accepted and 100% wrong! All wood retaining walls shall be constructed entirely of treated wood and conform to standard drawing LS-43. My neighbors want the fence between our houses done. If your neighbor has never fenced his land, he does not have to provide a fence that only really serves you. and defecate on them. The fence currently keeps the neighbors (lot to the east) cattle in. In short, the law says that the lower neighbor "owes" support to the upper/higher neighbor. The neighbor said he gave notice ahead of time but has no proof and I never got any prior notice. ), As he approached my wife in such a critical harsh manner I feel less inclined to offer him anything. I wasnt even the owner when he decided to build the block fence. Good luck! Am I responsible for half of 75 of fence on the property line, or only half of 43 of fence that serves me? Now we are stuck and the cost is adding everyday to put home on market for sale. upper soil grade). Im confident if I contracted any work on the wall he would not allow workers on his property. I came home from work one day and noticed they had replaced this fence (visible from the street as I passed). Make a demand to the neighbor for half of the costs. Every state interprets use differently. Still, we would have been happy to go 50/50 on a new fence but they did not inform us and did ask for us to help pay for a new fence. Im thinking giving up a few inches just to be sure he has not a single leg to stand on might be best. At the beginning of March I put a notice on there door that were replacing the fence with a textured vinyl fence. Start out by documenting the current condition of the fence. } She does not want to do it that way. 8 years ago I was worried that my dog would get injured by the new neighbors aggressive bulldog so I suggested we put up a new fence, he said sure as long as I replaced with heavy duty commercial chain link with slats (original is a leaning 42 yr old commercial chain link with broken and missing wood slats). Subscribe to our mailing list to get news and discounts. There is no splitting costs here as there is not shared structure. First off, please whatever you do, do not pay this man a dime. The fence was not leaning and still standing up and was holding up to natural elements such as wind but the neighbor claimed he or his dog could break the planks. ( However in our mind that project was 2 to 3 years away as we were already spending more on other priority projects) I noticed this work going on on the last day the contractor was finishing up. The walls can be designed as cantilever walls, or receive additional lateral support from anchors or bracing. My husband nailed planks on the fence to cover the 2x4s. If the neighbors refuse to pay half of the costs for repairing the fence, will we be able to take them to small claims? To put it much more simply, If a property owner benefits from the fence, he has to contribute to its cost. You might want to contact legal counsel to review this matter. 215-579-9390. Hello, My neighbor installed a 6 foot rod iron fence with brick pillars which is about 3 to 4 inches on my property The fence is only about 15 feet long and was installed years ago. They said that they would give us permission when we asked, to enter their backyard by their stairs on the other side of their house, which would then involve us or workers to have to cross their whole backyard, which is an artificial grass putting green! Then it will be for a judge to decide the matter! Putting up walls can be a good thing. The cost of rebuilding a retaining wall on appellants' property cannot be held to be equivalent to the cost of restoring respondent's property to its original condition by mere speculation and without some evidence, and the finding of damages is therefore not supported by the evidence. Neither of these block types is recommended when the retaining wall is supporting a sloping backfill, any other surcharge or a solid fence. modular concrete units stacked in a running bond pattern without mortar or reinforcement. Spoke to the neighbor again, told him I want to move the fence to the property line, first he said fine as long as its a block wall, so we got estimates but that was too much, so then he said we could move my fence to the property line, and then yesterday changed his mind again and said do not remove original fence! The new question that arises is if the fence is directly on the property line or on his side what approach do I take to this? The fence does not enclose their front yard but is still a neighboring fence. The sides of our yard are 6 white vinyl. From the way you have explained it, I would predict you are not going to be responsible whatsoever. First off, does she have the expertise to build a fence like a company that specializes in building fences and provides a warranty, which your not going to get with her? Some years back, with consent from the prior owner of the neighboring house, my husband paid for and built a fence in our FRONT yard between our driveway and neighbors side yard for growing plants on (decorative). What recourse do I have? Most houses have nothing between them in the front yards other than a concrete mowing strip or plants, if anything. Pile group reduction factors are not applied, 40 kip for extreme limit states. It clashed with the style of our house. Paying in full and go to court is not a good resolution to this situation. First point I made was that dont want a wooden fence due to the upkeep of it. I would still consider paying him a curtsey fee, yet am certainly less inclined to do so now. I appreciate your comment, but you must realize the majority of the time, these cases will be fought in small claims court by neighbors without much legal knowledge or without additional attorneys and the judge will likely follow the letter of the law. Yes, that is correct. So, like many, I have a real A-hole neighbor! The builder had built a fence between my neighbor and me ( there was no fence on that side of the neighbors property before). Any time children, especially my own, sat on the fence, the homeowner would yell get off my fence. 3 quotes How is this even possible? She is seriously the neighbor of nightmares and this is why people need to understand what it means to live in an HOA community. When water causes property damage -- flooded basements, collapsing retaining walls, or soggy gardens, for example -- feuds between neighbors often result. This is very true OriginalWally, thank you very much for the information! Your neighbor did not follow the proper procedure in order to go after you under the CA Good Neighbor Law for half the costs. They did not inform us and did ask for us to help pay for the fence. Shouldnt they have to replace the fence since they removed it? Do they have the right to force us to sign their agreement to allowour work to start? Nolo.com. My new neighbor just started replacing all his fencing in his backyard. I call upset that he has been pettt by ignoring not just me and my mother but the 2 contractors we tired to hire for this shared fence. The shared good neighbor fence between my yard and the neighbor fell during a storm 3 months ago. We deal solely with fences and decks and not siding, etc. As you might imagine, this is a fairly unusual scenario. We had a fence completely enclosing our backyard, with the back fence wall bordering 3 townhouses yards. Aesthetically, it looks better and I have another fence with another neighbor where I already have the 2x4s on my side. The neighbor does not want to share the cost to fix it, and states it is my sole responsibility. The fence is about 6 inside our side of the property line and is about 15 feet long, extending from our backyard gate towards the front yard/street. For example, Keystone limits their Garden Wall (4 high x 12 wide x 9 deep) product to 2 feet in height or six blocks in height total. Shirley Jean. Thank you. The fence is old and rotted and they have ivy growing on it which has helped to cause it to fall into my yard. Will we need to pay? My fence completely encloses my back garden and is a corner lot. Thank you, we try and post informative blog articles as much as we can but with the workload lately, sometimes it just isnt possible. Revised on 02-04-2022 A retaining wall is a structure designed and constructed to resist the lateral pressure of soil, when there is a desired change in ground elevation that exceeds the angle of repose of the soil. I think she should pay half. Neighbor does not want half he wants full amount. My neighbor put up a 6ft wood fence 4 inches from the existing 6ft wood fence on their side of the property. We both had existing wooden fences, about 12 apart. We live on a hillside, so our backyard is 3 stories down. It is very good you havent paid anything for it yet. Whether the climate is wet or dry, the walls must support the earth. In relation to dividing fences, the Department of Housing and Works has produced an excellent booklet - "Dividing Fences", which can be freely downloaded at www.dhw.wa.gov.au. 32 of additional fence along the property line serves the neighbor alone as his gate is closer to the front of his house. However, the fence installed has a deep setback, meaning half our lots side yard has new fencing, and the other half has no fencing at all (dont think it ever did). And approached us in an aggressive and very critical manner. Eventually, a neighbor moved and sold their house. They have the planks on their side and our side has the 2x4s. He offered to remove our old wooden fence for $600.00. There is a large high substantial retaining wall holding back higher ground in the ownership of our client which is in poor condition. Thats my fence, how could you do this, you are encroaching on my property, etc, quiet animated and critical. Were going through a similar situation. The Folsom Municipal Code adopts, by reference, the 1997 Uniform Building Code (UBC). He said he could not pay half only $600. The next day, while I was gone, the neighbor came to my wife very agitated and critical, saying, how inconsiderate this was for us to do, how could we, and it was his fence and we were using it and encroaching on his property. I am on disability and cannot afford to even split the cost really. The existing fence isnt bad at all. Lateral resistance of each pile: and edge of footing is 1'-6". Maybe higher. I mentioned it to my neighbor and he does not see anything wrong with the two fences. But we do not like the look of vinyl fence. Theyre so close that the trunks of the trees have pushed against the lower fence rail and caused the fence to separate from one of the posts and lean into my yard. I have a shared fence with my neighbor and we plan to share the cost of a new fence equally since it collapsed with strong winds a few months ago. So Im in very different situation from any Ive read. He then complained about us buying expenseive material (6ft red wood) and did not want to spend that. The whole development had to hire their own landscapers to do their front yards. Two questions: He was not nice when I went out to talk to him about it. Can she force me to pay for the materials and she do the labor? I have now recently discovered he placed video surveillance pointed /monitoring my front yard. Does it? Everything you need to know about the California Good Neighbor Fence Law! What was the outcome regarding the neighbors trees/vegetation ruining your fence? First off, they cannot tell you not to touch the fence at all, the fence as long as it is on the property line is both your neighbor and your property and therefore you have just as much right to it as they do, whether or not they paid for it. He came and did the job. Thank you, But the neighbors demand ourcontract is signed with the siding contractor, and demand the contractors license and liability and insurancecoverage. Who is Legally Responsible for a Retaining Wall My question involves real estate located in the State of: CA (unincorporated Alameda County) I am the uphill homeowner, my neighbor is the downhill owner. It is a common misconception by builders, designers, landscape contractors, pool contractors and homeowners that this section of the UBC allows retaining walls of up to 4 feet in exposed wall height to be constructed without a permit, regardless of the back slope conditions. In short, each owner has to pay one-half of the cost of maintaining or replacing the fence. against one of my trees. I am sorry I am reading this over and I think I understand your question. a picture frame fence since it looks the same from both sides, or when a basic nail-up fence is built with alternating panels, hence both neighbors get equal shares of the bad and good sides. I stated I was not the owner at the time, but I was willing to pay half. However, he wants all the planks on his side while the 2x4s are in my side. Except on the front portion which is in my front yard. The fence is attached on two sides to my neighbors existing fence. Notice of Intent to Alter Shared Boundary Fence. Surcharge is a vertical load imposed on the retained soil that may impose a lateral force in addition to the lateral earth pressure of the retained soil. Never gave us the opportunity to make a selection that matched our existing fence. The common law and statute doesn't allow a downhill property from removing lateral support without replacing it. Are they responsible for paying for half of the fence that runs along their easement, even if the fence doesnt border their yard? My question involves real estate located in the State of: California. Once you get three estimates from reputable companies, present them to her, then decide on a fence contractor, and send your neighbor the 30-day notice. It has to be built tough and allow drainage without giving way. In New South Wales, it is illegal to construct a retaining wall over 600mm high from the ground. This is why I believe it is best in your situation to try and come to an agreement amicably with your neighbor! Therefore it seems to me she is trying to rip you off! For the law to be on his side he would have had to give you a 30 day Notice to Alter Shared Boundary. At this point I dont care about the money but he keeps saying he paid for the last 3 fences which is not true. Many legal problems can arise otherwise. We are buying land. I live downhill from a neighboring house which was built after my house. They replaced it a couple of times, and eventually changed the style to a more traditional looking front yard fence. As I just stated I would be very hesitant to allow her to build the fence for two reasons. If this sounds familiar then your in the right place and your problem is soon to be solved with The California Good Neighbor Law also referred to as California Civil Code 841 or The Good Neighbor Fence Act of 2013. Neighbor wants to replace fallen fence due to construction on his property. First off, it might end up looking funny as often different fence companies use different grades of wood from different suppliers as well as have their own building techniques which may not match the other contractors. Our property is the lower one and theirs is the higher one. I suggest that you not continue the repair until it is determined who is responsible. Well, its simpler than that. If one party refuses to cooperate, the other party can do any of the following: The definition regarding Join for Use is likely going to be a major factor in deciding who is legally responsible to pay. Since the water is now drawing towards my side of the property. Our neighbor, without talking to us, tore his fence down and had a vinyl fence put up. He agrees to go half on the material (over the phone) its done and now he not telling me when or how he can pay me. Fight it until the very end! On our average bid, the material costs are nearly 1.5 to 1.75 the costs of labor. Am I supposed to send another certified letter with the bids on replacing the fence and give them a demand again or just go to small claims court and ask the judge to rule that they need to split the cost on fixing the fence? Next door landlord(just purchased the land) approach me daughter of owner of the house & ask to sloppy cost on shared fence that was very water damaged. It only benefits them. This was attached to the existing sideyard fence that was part of the developments construction. Home About Us She just moved into the neighborhood in December, but the strong winds we had back in January/February left us both with a collapsed fence. Apparently our fence was in bad shape, and the townhouses owners wanted it removed because they thought it was ugly. They said that would be a civil dispute amongst neighbors. The allowable height of walls is stipulated in the Zoning Code. I told them if we dont hear from them in 7 days to expect construction in 30 days from the response deadline. We intend to remove the fence. In that case, he has to pay the other owner for one-half of the already existing fence. what about security/privacy?) You need professionals to come up with a solid design for the retaining wall and you need them to execute it. It is not something that NEEDS to be done. If you dont agree to her doing the job, which I would be very wary of and personally would never allow, then she has no choice but to pay for it all herself or you guys use a different contractor. My last correspondence by text with the homeower who lives out of the area is if you want it done now you can do that and pay for it all yourself. Thank you Jason, I appreciate the advice! Essentially, neighbors are required to refrain from doing anything to their land that undermines a neighbor's land; or if they do, they're required to shore it up properly at their own expense. A retaining wall supports the land and is designed from bricks, timber, masonry, concrete bags, or suitable material. Re: Retaining wall law. are frequently available from local building supply warehouse stores. resolved successfully in California. Michael, thanks for the question. I disagree with you fully due to one small issue, what other way can you go about the situation should your fence need to be replaced immediately and your neighbor refuses to pay. State they didnt have insurance policies he wanted. Or, do I need to move the fence towards my house a few inches, and be solely on my own property line? They have the planks on their side and our side has the 2x4s. Wood retaining walls (with or without a fence) with an exposed wall height of two feet or less, where the retained soil does not support a surcharge (i.e. A retaining wall is a wall designed to resist lateral earth and/or fluid pressures, including any surcharge, in accordance with accepted engineering practice. Of course, like many laws there are exceptions. Hi we live in a resort area and our neighbor who does not live full time at his home, wants a fence between our yards to keep his dog in, privacy, etc. All dogs get out. The property line shows that the easement belongs to my neighbors parcel. The husband came racing over as soon as he saw me drive up to inform me that I owe him $500 for this fence. My neighbor just bought the house next to my rental and moved in and want to put up a new fence to replace the existing one. I figure if its on mine I have complete control although I will most likely make enemies with my neighbor. 2) If a retaining wall is attached to a building or if a building foundation is directly dependent upon the location and design of the retaining wall it is to be included in the building permit for the construction of the building. California's Good Neighbor Fence Law RC Fences and Decks Dispute arising between neighbors over boundary fence?
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