If my neighbor neighbor pours concrete on my property without a survey, am I responsible for removal?
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If my neighbor neighbor pours concrete on my property without a survey, am I responsible for removal?
I purchased a house in 2010. My neighbor, Mr. C, owns property to one side and behind my property. When I purchased the house, Mr. C told me my property line was my back fence and that he owned all the land behind. At the time, I never questioned this. In 2014, I rented my house out. At approximately that time, Mr. C had concrete poured behind my house up to the fence line. In July 2017 when I was in between renters, my husband and my new renter both questioned the property line and so I hired a company for a professional survey. The survey indicated that Mr C. had claimed 8.5 ft x 75 ft as his own, but it was actually my property. Of that land, 8.5 ft x 40 ft has concrete poured on it. September 2017, my husband and I met with Mr. C and his wife. They agreed with the survey and said I could take back the land but said that they wouldn’t pay for concrete removal, nor would they help my husband and me remove the concrete. We were told,
Asked on March 26, 2018 under Real Estate Law, Washington
Answers:
SJZ, Member, New York Bar / FreeAdvice Contributing Attorney
Answered 6 years ago | Contributor
It doesn't matter if "people would look at this as propety improvement": they had no right to pour concrete on your land (and they don't get to say what is or is not an improvement) and *must* pay to remove it. If you have a survey showing this was your land, then you seem to have a strong case, because really, the entire case is showing that you owned the land, and they poured concrete on it without your persmission. Because it seems to be a straightforward case, this may be a very good case for small claims court, as a "pro se" litigant (your own attorney).
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