So, a month or so after we moved in, our rear neighbors dropped by with a bottle of wine to welcome us. After 20 minutes or so of welcome and get ta know you talk, they got ready to leave. Then, they stopped and pulled out a piece of paper with our property boundaries on it.
They had done a staked survey a few months before and discovered that our shed encroached on their property – 12 inches on one side, 1 inch on the other. Their fence was currently about 3 feet back from their property line, and they were planning on a new, taller fence before they started working on their landscaping. And they wanted to reclaim their land and needed to have the shed moved to do so. They had notified the previous owner and his realtor, but had never had any action taken.
Thanks a lot for the welcome, we thought. So, we immediately went back to our settlement paperwork. The previous owner had, of course, signed a paper saying their were no encroachments. However, we knew we were unlikely to ever get anything out of him – there were enough hassles just getting the title freed up to buy the house!
So, we notified the title company. After a few weeks, they said that another staked survey would be expensive, so could we get quotes on getting the shed moved. We talked to a couple of contractors, most of which were too busy to bother. Finally, the guy who removed our tree gave a quote – pretty expensive, but I was confidant he could and would do it.
We submitted the quote to the title company and waited a few more weeks. Finally, Teresa called the lawyer at the title company, and he basically said it wasn’t their problem, so we should pursue legal action against the previous owner.
Right.
So, demoralized, T and I looked at each other… I said, let’s tear it down. She said, yes, l thought of that earlier. We both felt much better.
So, this weekend, we are tearing it down. And we won’t miss it at all! Wish us luck. Pictures to follow.
