Property Line Dispute

[chrissilini]

I bought a home with 0.71 acres of land about 1 1/2 years ago. When I first moved in a neighbor told me just for my information , that my property line extended at an angle, from 12 to 30 feet from the fence into the neighbors' yard. I didn't think anything of it until recently when the neighbor next door said that the fence was the property line, and the land was his. I had the property lines staked by a licensed surveyor and I do, according to the original subdivision plans, the town tax map and the surveyor, own the line. The fence is not the property line. My neighbor is now threatening to take me to court, that the land is his because prior owners allowed him "to use it". Does he have any legal standing? He's only lived there for 7 years. Any ideas about this?

 

[dee_dub]

If he used it with the prior owners' permission, he probably has no claim to the property - not under adverse possession (the permission means it wasn't hostile, which is a requirement for adverse possession), nor under a prescriptive easement (which also must be hostile). You should consult with a local real estate lawyer, but I think you would be within your rights to assert control over the land.