CanI be made to move a 20 year-old fence because it is approximately 1inch onto my neighbor’s property?
Get Legal Help Today
Compare Quotes From Top Companies and Save
Secured with SHA-256 Encryption
CanI be made to move a 20 year-old fence because it is approximately 1inch onto my neighbor’s property?
I have an existing wooden fence that was installed by the previous owners well over 15-20+ years ago. The installation pre-dates both myself and my neighbor’s ownership of our properties. I just had our property line re-surveyed and found that the my existing 15-20+ year old fence is either on or an inch or two over the newly surveyed boundary line. Can my neighbor force me to remove the fence that is inches over the line, even though it was there before either of us brought our properties and on both of our location surveys show the fence inside my property line?
Asked on July 26, 2010 under Real Estate Law, Maryland
Answers:
SJZ, Member, New York Bar / FreeAdvice Contributing Attorney
Answered 14 years ago | Contributor
Unfortunately, if the fence is truly on your neighbors property, yes, he probably can force you to move it. A property owner's right of control over his property, particularly over improvements built on it, is essentially absolute.
However, (1) surveys are not necessarily exact to the inch (or always consistent, from one survey to another), so it's possible that on a factual basis, the fence could be shown to be on your land (or rather; that if the neighbor tries to force you to move the fence, he may be unable to show that it's on his land by the appropriate degree of proof or evidence); or (2) it's possible you could work something out with you neighbor, such as paying for the right to keep the fence on his land. If you end up in conflict with your neighbor on this, consult with a real estate attorney to see your options.
IMPORTANT NOTICE: The Answer(s) provided above are for general information only. The attorney providing the answer was not serving as the attorney for the person submitting the question or in any attorney-client relationship with such person. Laws may vary from state to state, and sometimes change. Tiny variations in the facts, or a fact not set forth in a question, often can change a legal outcome or an attorney's conclusion. Although AttorneyPages.com has verified the attorney was admitted to practice law in at least one jurisdiction, he or she may not be authorized to practice law in the jurisdiction referred to in the question, nor is he or she necessarily experienced in the area of the law involved. Unlike the information in the Answer(s) above, upon which you should NOT rely, for personal advice you can rely upon we suggest you retain an attorney to represent you.