All Forum Posts by: Jacky Johnson

I'm a homeowner who plans to install a fence on my driveway along my property line to preserve privacy b/c there have been a lot of strangers going in and out of my neighbor's house constantly. I'm concerned. I gave a note to my neighbor (owner of her house) a few days ago that I'm going to start today and any post or rails will be on my side and I will pay the cost of the installation myself. In addition, the neighbor's trash bins have been next to my neighbor's side of the wall adjacent to my driveway. If I completely enclose the driveway with the fence, my neighbor will have to move her trash bins somewhere else b/c there won't be enough space to let those bins to pass through. I started the work today and my neighbor suddenly said I installed the posts past my property line and she will have to ask the county tomorrow to do an assessment about the location of the correct boundary line. I said I wouldn't object. I plan to ask her how long does the process take b/c I'm positive I did not install the posts past my property line (I measured it). What else should I do now and how should I continue to handle this situation?

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Originally posted by @Russell Brazil:

@Jacky Johnson What exactly do you mean by "The handyman got his hoodies on when he rang my doorbell, so I'm suspicious." ?

I couldn't see the handyman's face clearly because he had his hoodies on.

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Originally posted by @Andrew B.:

Everyone else has already pointed out your rights to do what you please on your property, so I wont go into that.

However, I need to out your inconsistency here. You invited them to build the privacy screen, then refused access to do so. That's going to be confusing on the neighbors side. I don't think you're obligated to install the privacy screen, but you need to figure that out before you continue the conversation. At this time, nobody is helping the situation.

I agreed that they can build their privacy screen at their own cost, but never agreed to allow access through my property to do so.

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Originally posted by @Mary M.:

wow, well, if this were me I would allow neighbor access so they can build their screen. if you are concerned with liability have the handyman show proof of insurance.

if the fence belongs to the neighbors they can take it apart if they want.

why escalate an already stressful situation? help your neighbor by being a decent person... sheesh.

the fence is co-owned.

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Originally posted by @Adam Martin:

Personally I wouldn’t have agreed to pay for the screen the first time. You did however so it seems like you aren’t opposed to the screen so I would let them have their handyman install it. If you are worried have them hire someone who is insured so that takes the liability off of you. I would also make it very clear that while you are allowing it you have the right to remove it and they are responsible for upkeep. I don’t know anything about these screens but I wouldn’t want to maintain one. My bigger question though is did they plant their own trees?

They will pay for the entire cost of the screen. They did try to plan a few trees (those that have grown 5-6 feet).

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Originally posted by @JD Martin:

1. Whose fence is it? If it's your fence, then you should do as you wish. If it's your neighbor's fence, but they just need a little more room to work by coming on your property to do the installation, I don't really see the problem with that.

2. What does removing a couple of boards and putting them back later mean? I assume that means they would take some fence boards out so that they can access the fence from your side, which goes back to #1.

3. What safety of your home are you concerned with? Did the handyman look shady? Is he working in a delicate area or can see that you have valuables everywhere?

The fence was installed by the neighbor's previous owner but I checked that the current height of the fence + privacy screen is 86 inches already and the max height of the fence by my city's code is 72 inches with an exception of up till 96 inches only if the rear yard is abutting an interior side yard (I think that's my case). The handyman got his hoodies on when he rang my doorbell, so I'm suspicious. Also, since my neighbor is hiring a handyman, I'm concerned if he were to have an accident while working on my backyard, who is going to be responsible?

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Originally posted by @Bruce Woodruff:

Screw your neighbor. It was your trees, on your property, that you removed. None of their business. If they had been nicer I would consider helping them out but they sound too entitled.

Question: who owns the fence? Is it 50/50? They may not even have the right to attach a privacy screen to the fence.

If this is really bugging them, they can install a screen of some sort that is attached to the ground on their side of the fence.

Something else to note....depending on your city, there are height limits to side-yard fences (7-8 ft usually)

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I'm a new homeowner and recently I chopped down two trees in my backyard. My neighbor on the other side of the backyard suddenly felt they lost their privacy and talked with us about how upset and devastated they are. I installed a privacy screen about 2' x 8' above the fence just to reimburse the neighbors and they said it's not enough. We also discussed that if they were to install another more study and high quality privacy screen and they paid for it, it's ok with me. A few days ago a handyman that I was unaware of rang my doorbell saying that my neighbor wanted to install their version of the privacy screen (2x as tall) and asked for my permission to enter my backyard to complete the installation. I refused the handyman (not sure if he is legit or not). Today I received a letter from my neighbor reminding me of what we discussed and how I refused their handyman and they requested again that they would like to have the handyman come to backyard to complete the privacy screen installation by installing part of it on our side (the neighbor hasn't started installing anything yet). The neighbor also said if I refused by 1/1 of next year, they will start installing it on their side by removing a couple of boards and putting them back in later. Should I let the handyman come in and complete the installation of this privacy screen on my side? What are the pros and cons? (I do not feel my privacy is lost at all, only my neighbor, but I do concern about safety of my home if I allow the handyman to come in). Thank you.

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I've scraped off old paint of a plaster wall from an old house and wanted to repair it for repainting. I've watched some online videos but none discussed repairing peeling paint off interior plaster walls. Also, after repairing, what primer and paint should I use for repainting if I want to use the same color? Thank you!