Neighbor Replacing Fence Question

If he is the one that paid for the fence it only seems fair that you give him those couple of inches. Apparently you and this neighbor are not neighborly?

The city inspector can come out and put flags out on the property lines and then tell you who has what responsibility.

I assume, the 4 inches you talk about are the width of the posts. The new posts in front line up with the existing posts in the back, so I guess the fence is straight. It sounds like they did things the right way by putting the fence boards on your side. The code for us is the person who pays for the fence has to have the "working parts" (posts) on their side. This gives the good finished side to you. Most people would love to have the nice finished side on thier side. The property line probably isnt being crossed when its standard to have boards on the side of the posts. It sounds like the fence in the backyard was built by whoever had your house before and they put the working side of the fence on your side which was probably right at the time. Your neighbors are paying for this fence to be replaced and are doing it the legal right way by placing the boards on your side. What would be really nice is, if you were to go talk to them and ask if they will do the "neighborly" fence. This is where each section between the posts alternates and faces the other way, so its equal for each neighbor. But,this means YOU PAY HALF THE COST. Its fair its equal, its nice looking and the right thing to do. Ours is this way on our 3 sides in the back yard and its great looking and makes it nice for both sides. Its nice to see the finsihed side but also neat to have the post and cross boards to set litte pots on ond decorate a bit. You need to be a good neighbor and go talk to them. But you do need to pay for half of this fence, so that you have some say in what it looks like and how it is done. I bet they arent encroaching on your side at all, you are just being picky with the 4 inch space created by the posts that isnt really that usable anyway.

If it comes to it, get your land surveyed by the county. That will show what is truly yours and what is truly theirs. We had this problem when our neighbors put their fence up. We were under the impression that part of their land was ours, as was the builder who was using their home as a model home. It wasn't and we were upset, but nothing we could do about it. We had taken care of it for 2 years, but it is what it is. We are putting up a fence this week, and I'm willing to bet the neighbors on the other side have no idea their house is so far to the left side of their land either...I'd get it surveyed and then legally they cannot do that.

Good fences make good neighbors.

I agree with Kelsey's Mom that it sounds like the 4 inches you are talking about relates to the width of the posts. You can't build a fence down the middle of 4x4 fence posts. The flush side, or finished side, has to go on one side of the posts or the other.
We had a neighbor that was going to do some extensive fencing between our yards where no fence had ever existed. He discussed his plans with us and we proposed paying half so that we could have a better type of fencing that actually would improve the value of both properties. It was worth it to us to have equal say and an eventual return on our investment.
I personally don't see how this is encroaching on your property given that the width of the posts were likely figured into things when the original fence was put up.
Contact the City of Fresno offices, ask who to talk to about fencing issues.
Be prepared to pay half for the fencing to have half the say.
Fencing is VERY expensive and if you're getting a new fence without paying for any of it, I would think that's a good thing as opposed to worrying about inches or what side of the posts the boards go on.
That's just my opinion.
You do have every right to call and find out what the guidelines and codes are. I would definitely do that Monday and then talk to your neighbor.

Best wishes.

Find out if the fence was installed ON the property line or not - be SURE!

Next, I'm wondering if your side is just showing the fence pickets and none of the posts. If so, aren't you getting the best side of the fence here and none of the posts showing? Most folks would LOVE that part. Just wondering!

You might want to thank your generous neighbor for paying for the entire fence rather than asking you to split the cost, which they should. When we replaced a fence with our neighbor they had the pretty side (posts not showing) on the first half because it's more exposed to them and on the second part the pretty side face us because we saw it more. However, we split the cost - about $3000-$2000 dollars. Fences are very expensive. Four inches? Are you serious?

I am confused -
the fence posts are on their property? but they installed the boards facing your property? I get the 4" but having the fence boards facing your property actually makes a nicer view from your property. You will see the front of the fence not the back (fence post) side.

If the gap between the fences is only 4" that could be resolved by installing another fence post which would "fill in" the difference between fences. It just seems really expensive to replace the entire fence.

Have you tried just talking to the neighbor about how you feel about the "encroachment" onto your property? Are they replacing the fence posts? In which case, just ask them to move it all back 4 inches onto their property.

Are you upset about the 4" of property, or because placing a 3-6 ft "wall" between the entire length of your property doesn't seem very neighborly?

I wish you Good Luck.

God Bless

Contact your city to get all the building codes. 4" sounds small but 4" ALL the way down your property line is not that small. You are paying taxes on that 4" and someone is "moving" in to your property PLUS changing the fence..

This neighbor knows what she is doing.... the only way for you to manage it is to stand up to her. You may need to spend some bucks on a survey which will mean she has to stay on her property. Some people "play stupid" to get what they want.. sounds like she is using this tactic.

I understand you need to get along with neighbors but don't be a doormat either.

Why does she want to place it on your side? She is encroaching on your property and that's that. Check with your village, city, building inspectors, property inspectors, etc. (might have to do some homework to find out exactly who). Get out your property plans and have them look at over. (They might have them anyway).Eventually, at least from our state I believe if the fence is permitted to stay and she uses your property it can eventually become hers as the years go by. (Look up easements and right of way).While it may only be a couple of inches now, it may become a future issue. It does not sound like enough space to grant an easement to the other lady and it doesn't sound like it is needed for any emergency personnel so I'd go with my gut instincts and run to the nearest inspector now. That's just me. And dig a little further for that code if it exists.

Call your township find out of they got a permit if they didn't they will have to take it down they should also be able to tell you if it is on your side or not. In our township you can't have privacy fences in the front yard and I think 6 foot is over the limit for a front yard no matter what type of fence it is here too. We have a privacy fence in our front yard on one side because we are the corner property and live next to apartments but we are the exception to the rule. Sounds like they are trying to get more space plus I am thinking if it is on your property you will have to pay taxes on it or the fine if it isn't a legal fence. the township or city whichever you live in should be able to help you.

There probably isn't a code for that...so the ground posts are still in line, just that the fence boards are on the other side (your side of the found posts, taking a mere 3 1/2 inches of what would have been space inside basically the alcove of the fence the wee bitty space nestled in between 4x4 fence posts and the 2x4 headers and footers, illbeit the place most of us like to use as a shelf...am I getting this??? Well it would bug me to, but in order for you to have any say, so long as your property lines have not been encroached upon and building a fence of this type and height where he's building it is perfectly legal...you kinda have to well...be in on the planing...

Most home owning neighbors will let the other home owning neighbor in on their fence building plans, not simply as a nicety but since it would be technically the other home owning neighbors fence as well...more likely because they are in hopes of splitting the cost and the write off and the property improvement. There is even s really cool fence simply for this purpose "the good neighbor fence" both sides are identical and the fence boards sit right down in the middle of the fence of posts headers and footers.

So if he didn't give you a heads up nor ask if you would like to split the bill...you've got no 'shelves' i'm afraid. :/

Of course you could insist on picking up a share of the construction costs if he obliges jumps at you insistance simply inform him that the fence boards must be alternated; your side - his side, from section to section. Tell him you fancy your 'shelves' :)

I can't imagine anyone could argue with that...course if you didn't want the fence, if you won't be sharing the cost and you still wanna complain, you've every right...just not much standing room. I'd think long and hard how you approach this subject though, this is afterall your neighbor and I suspect you arent intending on leaving any time soon or the fence boards wouldn't bother you, nor does he I'd imagine as he is putting in a new fence...could be dolling it up for the market, but my guess is he's there for the long haul. so be cautious kind careing and compassionate...and insist on chipping in anyway it's the neighborly thing to do... :)

Good luck on you 'shelves' ;)

Find the true property lines. You will have to pay to have it done but if it is your land, you can just remove the fence. I would point this out to her and that she needs to make sue it is on her land...

It could be that the people before you put up he fence so it actually your fence... not hers.

Most municipalities use the uniform buiilding code. You may want to contact your municipality and see how many feet they must be off of your property line. I would then have them come and measure because they can make them move the fence back to where it should be.

When we replaced a fence that went around our old house we had a survey done and intentionally had the fence placed wholly on our side of the lot line so we had the entire say so about it.
Crossing your lot line is illegal - they just can't go and add inches to their property.
Have your lot surveyed and inform them 'no crossing the line' or their lawyer can speak to your lawyer about it - and you might be able to order them to have the fence moved at their expense.
Here's a few good books to read:
"Neighbor Law: Fences, Trees, Boundaries & Noise",
"Homeowner's Rights: A Legal Guide to Your Neighborhood (Legal Survival Guides)",
"Order without Law: How Neighbors Settle Disputes".

The fencing should be 12 inches off the property line on the side of the line of the person who is purchasing said fence.
LBC

In most jurisdictions, it's actually trespassing for a neighbor to install any structure on another neighbor's property. It's the same thing as if you planted a tree in their yard. I would advise your neighbor that they can not come on your property (even if it's just reaching in) to replace the fence and ask that they please replace on their side only. If that doesn't work, call your local zoning board or city building department and ask how to handle the situation.

If you end up losing the arguement and the fence is installed on your property, it will become YOUR fence. It's on your land, and thus it's yours. That means you own it, but you're also responsible for maintenance too. I'm certain of this part as we dealt with this when living on a city lot once. A neighbor mistakenly installed a fence about 8" onto our land several years before we moved in. We learned that we actually owned the fence when it started to sag and the city cited us for not maintaining it. We tried to argue that it was the neighbors, but learned that since it was on our property, it was our responsibility. Fortunately, we had great neighbors who were happy to work with us to move the fence back to their side as it was being replaced. And we split the cost.

Actually ladybug c that is town by town our town used to require that you be 6 inches on your property and anything over 4 ft required a permit that bylaw has changed and you are allowed to go right on your property line.

It's your yard your fence tell her no and that she should have had her fence done properly.

Check with your local government (city/village/township). I would think the key words here are about the 4 inches on "your property". Your neighbor doesn't have any right to put anything on your property. I live in small town in Ohio, and found out that if I wanted to put up a fence, a brick patio, or even a prefab/assembled small storage shed, I would have to get approval and a permit from the locals. There are also restrictions on how close any of these items can be to the property line. Anyway, check your local city government building and zoning to see what the local rules are.

I know you've already got plenty of advice here, but just wanted to throw out there two things. First, I grew up on a farm and now live in the 'burbs surrounded by fences, so I feel your pain on a few inches! Second, over the last few years we've replaced our very old fences with 2 neighbors (separate occasions). We chose the contractor but did split the cost evenly and therefore choose the style together. The thing I wanted to share is that for the new fence, the style we chose actually does place the boards exactly in the line between the posts, not on one side or the other. Our very old fence was the "good neighbor" one described by someone else below where each section between 2 posts alternates whose side of the posts the boards are on. On our new fence, the vertical fencing boards themselves overlap a little and alternate "front/back" but both "front" and "back" are still in the 4 inch area between the posts. So both sides of the fence actually see every post. And then both yards feel "bigger" by those few inches. It's actually very nice looking. So, it is possible to choose a style of fence that doesn't fall more on one side than the other. But of course, in your situation, to suggest this means you're paying for half of the fence that divides your property -- in the back, anyway. We considered doing a short fence in the front, too, which we would have had to pay for entirely ourselves as it didn't exist before and didn't need to. And we certainly didn't expect our neighbor to chip in on that. But we decided some nice bushes would look greener and still serve as a border for our landscaping. Anyway, don't assume your neighbor is being evil, but do feel free to voice your desire to keep your few inches. They actually may prefer to see the finished side but don't want to bug you to pay half. Or, be prepared to pay half to get something other than the minimum required by code. I hope that helps a little, and good luck!