Neighbor building gate on shared road

Dheat, seems to me you have handled this situation beautifully, i.e. getting information from those who have experienced something similar as well as getting legal and documental evidence speaking to the issue.

It sounds as though you are discovering much of what you would have probably been involved in had you been living there. Your neighbors seem to be friendly, even kind.

Congratulations on taking the steps needed to get aquainted with those neighbors.

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so now you have to go talk to this other neighbor that's propery is not even there to find out why?

THanks for keeping us informed.

Sounds like you are handling this well, being informed,a sking questions, and going about this peacefully until you know what the score is.

Sounds like you have good neighbors, one might need to understand where the boundries are a little better - but sounds like not an ISSUE, but - small thing to work out.

The non-neighbor that put up the gate - that's a puzzle, and will have to be dealt with. Very puzzling. It will be interesting to hear the 'reasoning' behind that move....

So this gate is 1/2 on your property and 1/2 on your neighbor's property. But put up by a different person. How does your neighbor feel about it, probably best if both of you stand together & confront/ work on this issue.

Thanks for the continuing updates.

--->Paul

As to the ditch, which hopefully is an improvement you would have made, is this guy using the road to access his parcel? Is the gate guy? It sure would be nice to have a maintainance agreement and all be on the same page as to what is to be done, by whom, and when! Not to mention, who has the right to be on the road to start with. Somebody bringing in and spreading gravel might be nice. Somebody widening the road onto your land or racing atv's, NOT nice!

rambler,


Indeed. Here's my theory. The people I'm referring to as neighbors all bought land from a seller that split a 100-acre tract into 5 parcels. The neighbor that erected the gate was there before anyone else, is a friend of the seller and probably had the run of the place for at least a couple of years. He may not have adjusted his thinking or behavior with the arrival of other land owners. I dunno, but I'll find out.

Yes, that's correct. And the "different person" has no property claim on the road.

I didn't ask and he didn't tell. In an effort to keep the problem small, however, I didn't tell him it had me concerned.

Doug

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Navotifarm,

I'm not sure whether the ditch was an improvement or not--I couldn't tell from my vantage, wasn't prepared to slog through the water--but the digger guy said it wasn't helping. Even if it was an improvement, he should not have done it without my permission. Other than the potential for breeding mosquitoes, the water was of no concern to him, i.e., it wasn't causing a problem on his property.

Well, if he is 1) he doesn't have to and 2) he shouldn't be without my permission. The survey shows the entire road beyond the neighbor's entrance as being my property. He was several 100 feet beyond the entrance to his property. He simply may not understand we don't share the road beyond his entrance. (I didn't say anything Saturday--I was completely caught off guard and dumbfounded--but we exchanged phone numbers .)

If you mean is the gate guy using the road to access his parcel, no. First, they're two different roads. Second, I actually use the gate guy's road to access my parcel--I have a perpetual easement. The gate guy's parcel is at the entrance to the 100-acre tract--the other 4 of us property owners use his road to access our parcels.

Doug

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So, the road leading to this new gate, is it a public road, or is it the gate-guy's private road with the easement?

His intent may just have been to gate his easement road just before it hits yours and your neighbor's property, and he missed by a few feet (or more).

If you have an easement through his land, I'd still be careful about ruffling his feathers. Firm and balanced is ok, but adversarial may be bad. You have the law on your side, but being forced to take a legal stand can be a financially and psychologically draining experience.

I appreciate the updates on this thread, it's interesting to me but - yea, by now a map might help clear it up in my head, there are more easements and more private roads on at least 3 different properties, that by now I'm a little lost as to who is driving on whom's ground any more.

Kinda glad my county doesn't allow shared roads any more, it gets so darn messy so darn fast. Easements need to be clear on the deeds, and no sharing, different driveway per house.

--->Paul

I just want to say be careful. I started a thread a few years ago about a "caretaker" who owned no land at all , threaten to kill my dh, ds's and son in law because we had permission from the land owner to look at the property to see if we wanted to buy it. He said he could kill them and bury the bodies where nobody would ever find them. After we called the sheriff, the guy threatened to kill HIM. We didn't file charges.

bty, the threat worked, we never went back to the property again, and as far as I know the guy still hasn't sold it.

Curiouser & curiouser.

Keep going on this long running saga.

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Hi Doug
I've owned land far away from where I live for a while. My nieghbors know me and would try to get water off of my road if I wasnt there, lots of people would think thier doing you a favor. Good roads cost good money, they would try to help protect my investment and I would thank them. Just like I pitch in if I have time.

Gates cost money as well, if a third party put up a gate on my land where I didnt want it I'd take it down and keep it/use it elsewhere. Wouldnt need to discuss anything unless it happened again. They'd prob get the point.

Most of the time, none of us are correct when we try to guess why a person has done something without talking to them about it.

At least your problem is on a road. Last week we were at our Ga Homestead. Got out my walking stick and took a hike about on the 26 acres we own across the road from the House property. This is what I found: A ten foot section of fence has been cut along with two trees in the back pasture. Four wheeler tracks lead to the neighbors. Also found a new wildlife camera strapped to a tree, lots of corn on the cob scattered around, Two very nice chairs, one pretty good igloo cooler, two new five gallon buckets from homedepot (one filled with corn). Am I mad, yes, beyond mad. Neighbor said they didn't cut the fence and didn't know anything about the camera and feeding the deer. (from his reaction when I asked, I almost laughed in his face when he denied it). Had a cattle panel laying around the old house on the property. It's now closes off the four wheeler access. BTW anyone want to buy a new wildlife camera that I found strapped to My tree, lots of corn of the cob, Two very nice chairs and one pretty good igloo cooler? I'm keeping the two new five gallon buckets from homedepot.

Daniel

Here's a crude map (legend below):
Parcels
Me = My Property
N1 = Neighbor 1
N2 = Neighbor 2
N3 = Neighbor 3
N4 = Neighbor 4

Roads
1 = Road belongs to Neighbor 2; perpetual easement granted to Neighbor 1 (?) and me
2 = Road shared by Neighbor 2 and me; property line is center of road
3 = Road belongs to me
4 = Road belongs to Neighbor 3
? = Road, but don't know to whom it belongs

Points of "Interest"
G = Gate erected by Neighbor 2
D = Area where Neighbor 1 was "digging" with tractor

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I don't understand a lot of this whole post. For starters. Do you have written permission to use the road with the gate since it is all on your neighbor's property 10 ft from the corner. Does the other guy who was working on the ditch have permission to use that part of the road? A lot of things aren't clear but I understand your position on this matter. Just be thankful you don't have gas and oil drillers to contend with. I hope you luck in getting it all figured out. Sam

tamsam,

I own half of the road on which the gate is constructed: the property line is the center of the road.

The other guy that was working on the ditch does not have permission to use that road.

It's confusing. I'm not sure my "map" is going to help any.

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Live and learn. Die and forget it all.

If a neighbor builds something on your property and you leave it alone there's a chance that the property becomes your neighbors via the legal concept of adverse possession.

One way you can protect yourself against that is to offer to lease the neighbor the land that they're using "for $1 a year". Most people will consider that to be very cheap, and will typically sign the lease and pay the $1. But the fact that they leased the land from you means that it's not a candidate for adverse possession at any time in the future.
At the end of the year, you can then, simply and cheaply, point to the lease and reclaim your property. With the lease in hand it's a much less expensive case to prove. If he thought it was his land, why would he lease it from you, is the pertinent question a judge would ask.

In some localities, zoning allows for building if the lot is above a certain minimum size. A friend of mine had a 10 acre lot that was buildable because it was 10 acres. A neighbor adversely possessed a 2' strip on the edge and it's now a 9.9 acre lot. No longer buildable.

If the road is split between the two properties and you both use it, you may have a constructive easement. And if you do, you have the right to cross their land, and they have the right to cross yours.

I am not an attorney, and this is not legal advice. It's opinion. For legal advice you should retain and consult an attorney.

Bruce / ebeyfarm.blogspot.com

The conclusion I reach from the map and the location of the gate is that either neighbor 2 or possibly 3 does not want you or neighbor 1 traveling by them. Possibly neighbor 2 or neighbor 3 does not like your or neighbor 1's visitors.

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you know you can!

It does help understand. Not much to add or suggest. I've never seen any series of easements so convoluted. I'll have to apologize in advance for saying that I couldn't possibly ever imagine myself buying or building in that kind of place. It's at the mercy of too many neighbors and their whims.

I sort of ran into the same situation with my road. My property abuts several land owners of one acre lots. My road is owned by me, no easements granted to anyone.

My property is a T shape - long road leading to a rectangle of 30 acres (road is approximately two acres long or one mile).

To make a long story short, there is alot on the left side of the road that joins my road. Every time the lot has been sold, I believe the realtor tells the purchaser that they can have an easement to their property (which lessons the amount of money the purchaser will have to spend to build a driveway since the property is approximately 20 feet high off the main paved road). So the property has sold 8 times since 1986. Each time I drive up my driveway and there the new property owners are marking off where their new driveway will go by using my road to save money.

Each time I set them straight. I own the road. I do not grant easements, right of ways, etc. They will have to expend the funds and put a driveway in from the main paved road.

In a couple of weeks, the property is for sale again. It's for sale right now. I would love to buy it since it joins my property, but at 28,000 for one acre, I think not.

Point is - if you don't intend on granting an easement or right of way, never start it. I would never buy property that is land locked or requires an easement, it is just too much hassle and worry.

But I figure this new realtor will lead the next buyers to believe that I will grant an access. Guess I am not a good neighbor, but I paid to have the road put in and have paid to keep it maintained and bought the land it sits on..no easement for anyone.

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Sidepasser
Have You tried posting a BIG Sign at the beginning of the road stating that it is a Private Road and No Trespassing is Allowed , it might cause the next sucker to ask his agent or You about the right of way before buying it .
Bob