Can we move or force my neighbor to movea fence that is on our property line?
Get Legal Help Today
Compare Quotes From Top Companies and Save
Secured with SHA-256 Encryption
Can we move or force my neighbor to movea fence that is on our property line?
7 years ago our neighbor put a replacement fence on the property line. He put the fence right back on the line but put the posts and cement footing on our side of the fence. We didn’t say anything then, but recently decided to erect our own fence and our survey clearly shows the posts to be on our property. Our neighbor refuses to allow us to move it even at our own expense. Who legally owns a fence placed directly on the property line? Can we remove the fence/posts without his permission? If not, what recourse do we have to force him to move it?
Asked on November 10, 2011 under Real Estate Law, New York
Answers:
SJZ, Member, New York Bar / FreeAdvice Contributing Attorney
Answered 13 years ago | Contributor
Your neighbor may not put any structure, including fence posts, on your property. Your best, however, rather than simply removing it yourself, is to take you neighbor to court and seek a court declaration that the posts are on your land and order than he move it. The reason is, a single survey is not necessarily dispositive--you'd be surprised how often surveys are wrong. Your survey could be in error, your neighbor could have a survey to the contrary...get the court to declare whose land the posts are on, rather than move them, and risk having the tenant try to call the police on you and/or sue you for destruction of his property.
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.