Sharing the cost of a fence

[ecrins]

Hi,

I bought my home 2 years ago and I share a wood fence with one of my neighbor that need to be replaced.

One third of the fence has rot damaged on my side due to the sprinkler systems that the previous owner had on my property.

One third of the fence is leaning on my neighbor side due to his plants that are taking the fence down.

One third of the fence is in an acceptable shape.

When requesting quotations, all fence company refused to repair the fence due to the extent of the damages (for their good faith... they offer me to repair one my other fence even if I asked them to replace it too).

I offer to my neighbor to split 50-50 the cost of the new fence. He refused by stating that the previous owner agreed to replace the fence at its own expense (no written trackrecord of the agreement).

What are my options to get us moving?

I do not want to go to court for a fence but in the meantime I want my neighbor to pay its fair share.

Thanks for your help.

 

[Michael Wechsler]

Hi,

I bought my home 2 years ago and I share a wood fence with one of my neighbor that need to be replaced.

One third of the fence has rot damaged on my side due to the sprinkler systems that the previous owner had on my property.

One third of the fence is leaning on my neighbor side due to his plants that are taking the fence down.

One third of the fence is in an acceptable shape.

When requesting quotations, all fence company refused to repair the fence due to the extent of the damages (for their good faith... they offer me to repair one my other fence even if I asked them to replace it too).

I offer to my neighbor to split 50-50 the cost of the new fence. He refused by stating that the previous owner agreed to replace the fence at its own expense (no written trackrecord of the agreement).

What are my options to get us moving?

I do not want to go to court for a fence but in the meantime I want my neighbor to pay its fair share.

That's a good question. Whatever the prior neighbor said is obviously irrelevant. First I would see whether a local ordinance would cover such a situation. Unfortunately you have not provided us with any information about where you are or any research you may have done with regard to your local ordinances. Many state laws do require owners to jointly maintain a common fence.

You might want to take pictures of the rot and the need to replace the fence,and send notice to your neighbor (certified method) about replacing the fence and potential costs. You should also address the issue of payment and responsibility which, if you cannot agree, you will unfortunately be forced to go to small claims. This is not the best method from a "friendly neighbor" perspective. You may want to start with sending notice or, rather, a "proposition" and see what happens. It's always more forceful if you can insert local law just as an "FYI."