I have a neighbor that replaced my fence on one side. Secondly, I wouldnt pay them a dime if I were you. The solution is simple a fence called a good neighbor fence where the rails as you call 2x4s alternate with every post linearly. In this scenario, would the State law trump the city? This is if you dont take the proper steps leading up to the construction of the fence. Never gave us the opportunity to make a selection that matched our existing fence. I Said they should of waited till the house was under my name and I would of helped out. When you show up for court be prepared with the pictures, the bids, a copy of your check, a copy of the 30 day notice and proof of service, as well as a copy of Code of Civil Procedure section 841. "At the basic level, a retaining wall is a structure that holds or retains . Sager v. O'Connell :: :: California Court of Appeal Decisions I told them if we dont hear from them in 7 days to expect construction in 30 days from the response deadline. If they bear the cost, its probably not my business; but if we share the cost, is it reasonable for me to ask my neighbor to remove the trees before repairing (or replacing) the fence? Who's legal responsibility is the retaining wall?(Los Angeles, CA) - Reddit We are planning on filling our in-ground pool and need a shared fence temporarily removed to allow for pool demolition equipment to enter the backyard. Yet, I am going to have to disagree with you that this is not a good resolution solely for the fact that there are no other options. All dogs get out. Cindy, I am sorry to inform you but your neighbor is correct in this situation. (I believe youve already tried this approach and it failed?). Theres an easement/driveway between my backyard and my neighbors front yard. She just moved into the neighborhood in December, but the strong winds we had back in January/February left us both with a collapsed fence. The law places responsibility on both parties because both benefit from the fence. If you are inferring above that another option would be to repair, then you have missed the actual basis for this article. Spoke to the neighbor again, told him I want to move the fence to the property line, first he said fine as long as its a block wall, so we got estimates but that was too much, so then he said we could move my fence to the property line, and then yesterday changed his mind again and said do not remove original fence! If your neighbor has never fenced his land, he does not have to provide a fence that only really serves you. Although you didnt follow the steps necessary under the CA Good Neighbor Law, if it were me I would go ahead and take him to small claims court. Good Luck! To put it much more simply, If a property owner benefits from the fence, he has to contribute to its cost. Make a demand to the neighbor for half of the costs. He argued that it was, and that the neighbor on the other side of him gladly paid her portion, and told me that legally, I have to pay. Entire enclosure: the property owners entire property is enclosed by the attachment of other fencing to the boundary fence The fence needs to replace much of it because of the poor maintenance on my neighbors side. What other option does a homeowner have if their fence is failing miserably and needs replacement immediately, yet their neighbor refuses to pay a dime? If there is a better option out there please let all our readers, as well as I, know! Were going through a similar situation. If she fails to respond, you will then go ahead with the construction (just make sure and inform her the days they will be replacing the fence in case she has dogs, etc.) It wouldnt be fair for you to pay for the whole fence, and the law is clear that you dont have to. Such a bizarre situation, youd think that any homeowner in their right mind would prefer a fixed fence over one that is collapsed. I share a fence that is 75 long with a neighbor. Wood retaining walls (with or without a fence) with an exposed wall height of two feet or less, where the retained soil does not support a surcharge (i.e. Yes, there are no provisions in the statute to account for one neighbors actions, i.e. Anyway, can they sue me for 1/2 the cost of this ? text messages, etc.) You are not responsible for any of the costs whatsoever and therefore you should not pay half much less the full costs, which I have no idea how this neighbor believes this to be fair. I bought my house last year and my neighbors decide to redo their fence . The answer is a definite NO She cannot make up the rules and make you agree to her installing the fence while you pay for all the materials. You can also let them know that their best bet at recouping some of the money would be to go after the previous owner of the house. against one of my trees. Am I correct? Our back yard is 150 ft from the property perimeter and we maintain a privacy fence on it for our yard. #gallery-1 img { What options do I have? For more information or questions please call RC FENCES @ (925) 405-7658 or email at [emailprotected]. But the legal issues can be as muddy as the mess in your backyard. We asked if we could pay for a gate to be put into the fence at our cost so we could have access to the area. The development has remained pretty much the same over the years, and only a handful of people chose to put up decorative front yard fences. Note that I dont believe good neighbor fence laws cover someone wanting to upgrade or replace for the heck of it. I was advised by the HOA board about Cal. If they do not want to do that then they can eat the costs as they rushed to replace it when they should have waited until they spoke with you, the new homeowner! I have been a general contractor for nearly 20 years, a carpenter longer than this and a construction law attorney for over 10 years and I can recall the uphill neighbor being responsible for a retaining wall on only rare occasions. The neighbor is bullying you in order to make money off you. The fence its in a really bad condition. He was not nice when I went out to talk to him about it. This appears to be the pattern on our block. Detail(s) showing complete construction details of the retaining wall. 2017 Montclair Constructions | Designed by by Web and SEO Guru. UBC 106.2, item 5 states that: A building permit shall not be required for retaining walls that are not over 4 feet in height measured from the bottom of the footing to the top of the wall, unless supporting a surcharge . Therefore it seems to me she is trying to rip you off! Thank you, However, he wants all the planks on his side while the 2x4s are in my side. level backfill only). This definition also applies to freestanding pool walls. Thank you! Complete Guide To Retaining Walls and Your Home | Square One Civ. My neighboring fence completely collapsed during a storm. Both neighbors are 50% responsible according to the CA Good Neighbor Law. The neighbor sent me the written estimate from the construction person that showed the same price, but did not say panels but said the fence would be built from boards. Hi RC fencing! He should have sent the notice to you 30 days prior to the construction of the fence and should have sent it to you certified mail with the return receipt requested. It clashed with the style of our house. Nat, I am slightly confuseddo you mean none of the fence contractors are willing to take on the job without both homeowners consent? She does not want to do it that way. His tenant dog Kill my dog. The rest of the fence between our backyards is fine. Notice of Intent to Alter Shared Boundary Fence. Part of our fence fell down last year we contacted the gentelman who owns the home ( its a rental) and has a pool. The neighbor is requesting I pay for all the materials which is half the estimate and she and her handyman friend will do the work. It happens all the time. I came home from work one day and noticed they had replaced this fence (visible from the street as I passed). #gallery-1 .gallery-caption { If we cannot agree, can we each build our own choice of fence? First off, since you say you agree with Potential Customer, please answer the question I have asked them as well. Construction Landing Page Pro Theme by: Rara Theme. Use of tiered walls is a special condition where two or more short walls, horizontally offset from one another, are used in lieu of a single tall retaining wall. He has not responded to my texts since May as to when he will replace the fence. She was under the impression that HOA would cover the cost, but after kindly explaining this isnt the case she has grown more difficult. The only issue is now you must collect the amount ordered to be paid to you. The allowable height of walls is stipulated in the Zoning Code. I have 2 concerns, would we need to pay for the sections that dont enclose our backyard? My neighbor fence between the driveways in California needs to be replaced from wind damage last December. It sounds like you own a condo and that it might be a party wall. He also damaged a small two foot retaining wall that serves in that corner of my yard as a decorative feature as well as a way to halt erosion. And her contractor for one year. Construction details, including retaining wall cross section. I contracted with a contractor to do the job this month and let the brother know 2 months ago I did this because he never responded with a quote and I can finance the fence with the contractor and the homeowner is not responding. I would definitely go ahead with the notice to alter shared boundary as soon as possible giving the neighbor as much time as possible before construction commences. Retaining wall is which neighbor's responsibility in San Francisco, CA I would then try once more to collect half the costs from your neighbor (although you dont have to do this) and if she continues to refuse you will proceed with filing the lawsuit. Seemed fair. Who is responsible for a Retaining Wall? | Legal Advice - LawGuru There better be good reasons other than make my yard look better. He then complained about us buying expenseive material (6ft red wood) and did not want to spend that. Please let everyone know if you have any ideas as to another route to take. A building permit can usually be issued over the counter when two copies of the following are provided along with a completed permit application: Segmental gravity retaining walls such as Keystone, Allan Block, etc. Building a Retaining Wall: 8 Dos and Don'ts - Bob Vila The common law and statute doesn't allow a downhill property from removing lateral support without replacing it. I still cant see this fence from my property. 2016 Family Owned and Operated Get a FREE Estimate! and defecate on them. Now as far as the law is concerned although your neighbor is not being a very good neighbor nor is he being very diplomatic, but I believe he still has a right to refuse the vinyl fencing whether or not he is paying a dime. You sound very knowledgable, friendly, and it sure looks like you build some top notch fencing. There was nothing wrong with previous wood fence it had while home was in escrow. PDF IR 16-3: EARTH RETAINING SYSTEMS WITH PRECAST CONCRETE OR - California Hello, I bought a house last year and within days neighbor asked me to pay $3500 for the block wall he had built. The fence is about 6 inside our side of the property line and is about 15 feet long, extending from our backyard gate towards the front yard/street. I don't agree with Mr. Olden. What should I do? If you cant abide by the rules that make the neighborhood clean and what probably attracted you to purchase in the first place, buy elsewhere! Never allowed us to consider disparate bids. in the yard, providing security & privacy, etc. Labor to build a retaining wall costs from $50 to $75 per hour. It benefits the homeowners as they now have a legal route to take to replace their fences, which obviously is exactly the reason the law was created! While these panels may look nice on the store shelves, they are made from inferior wood products and generally all the lumber is dimensionally smaller. In order to do so, he has to place a retaining wall to hold the dirt in place. During these early years, most of the neighborhood had children. I am currently dealing with a neighbor that is refusing to fix our shared fence. Do we owe anyliability and responsibility to the neighbors? He asked us to help pay for the leaning retaining wall between our properties. Joel I wish I could be of more help but this is a question outside my area of knowledge. Regardless of the permit requirements, it is important to follow the manufacturers recommendations for each block type since the allowable wall heights vary significantly for each block type. However our back fence was not vinyl, but an older wooden fence, in some need of repair. Exposed Wall Height is the vertical distance measured from the finish grade at the bottom of the wall (i.e. (510) 547-2457 I hope this answers your question somewhat good luck with your neighbor! As far as the charging you for cleaning costs, etc. Today I go into my yard to find our shared fence down! That or they will have to take it to small claims court where you will then be able to plead your side and hopefully you have kept pictures, notes, correspondence between you and neighbor as all this will be very important to your court case. Our situation is different then all the comments I have read. I told him I would also throw my neighbor a bone. Also, the new fence could not be an unnecessary upgrade from the previous fence. You must then pay the contractor in full. Lastly, the neighbor failed to serve the notice to you. It gets a little complicated when it comes to retaining walls. The amount to pay is not a small amount and it can take a long time to collect. } Am I still responsible for half? I understand the price of a redwood fence nowadays, especially since the pandemic, can be very expensive. The slats are winged vinyl so I have to poison from above and it is becoming too big of a job. As an example, two tiered retaining walls each with an exposed wall height of 3 feet, and level back fill that are horizontally offset by a distance of 2 feet would be treated as a single 6 foot tall wall and as a result, a building permit would be required. California's Good Neighbor Fence Law RC Fences and Decks I do not see why you wouldnt be able to do what youre proposing except for the fact that it could bring along with it a lot of issues. They always ignored them, I eventually thought they just dont care and I made it clear Im not looking for any money if they cant afford it. They told me that as long as I dont pay then Im not allowed to touch their wall at all and they were going to take me to small claims for them to collect what I owed them. Also a small child or animal could possibly get into his yard and get in his pool. From boundary line disputes, to one of the more common issues, which is the neighbor(s) outright refusal to help pay for the cost of a new fence, maintenance or repairs. Neighbor and I share a panel/lattice on top fence for most of our shared fencing. Or can I break down the fence that only covers his backyard ( since his property line goes passed mine in the back yard) because if Im not getting paid for that extra 18-15ft can I re use the wood for a gate on my property. I have a 5 acre property with no HOA or perimiter fence requirements. I had not notified him yet of the contractor doing the job as it just got scheduled. Part of the fence is now leaning into the neighbors property. lower soil grade) to the finish grade at the top of the wall (i.e. The Folsom Municipal Code adopts, by reference, the 1997 Uniform Building Code (UBC). Code 841, but my fear is that after having a letter certified to her, she will either ignore it or refuse after the 30 days. The judge will side with you; you are in the right in this case! How do I keep the gap clear or how can I get my neighbor to allow a new fence on the property line (since he has 2 large dogs it cant come down without his participation)? I did not understand exactly but saw it was the same price and pressure treated, etc. I signed a contract and the day before installation neighbor said no, fence could not be removed, so I had to have it installed on my side (plus pay the total $3000). Weve contacted our neighbor to alert him of the project but he refuses to have the fence removed. keeping dogs/ children, etc. If you are not completely set and getting a vinyl fence then obviously your option would be to build a new wooden fence of similar quality to your previous one and require the neighbor to pay half the cost which would probably be your best bet in this situation. Next door landlord(just purchased the land) approach me daughter of owner of the house & ask to sloppy cost on shared fence that was very water damaged. If the retaining wall was a structural requirement of the lot grading . I will now finish the fence, pay 100%, block his view of my yard, and recapture my privacy. Yes, the 30 day timeline still applies, but I would have to imagine a judge would take the extenuating circumstances into account. However, it was brought to my attention that the retaining wall the fence is on is failing and will need to be replaced before the fence can go up. This is no less true in California, where houses are packed closely together and neighbors like to maintain their privacy. Am I responsible for half of 75 of fence on the property line, or only half of 43 of fence that serves me? Thanks for any time you spend reading about my situation. Repair vs Replacedue to preference or aesthetic. Also if you file a small claims suit you can go after him for all your time you spent going after him for the money like the time it took you to go to the courthouse, etc. Essentially, neighbors are required to refrain from doing anything to their land that undermines a neighbor's land; or if they do, they're required to shore it up properly at their own expense. Engineering calculations and associated data; Soils report (if applicable) For detailed plot plan requirements see Building Permit Requirements. But we do not like the look of vinyl fence. Include good color pictures. If this sounds similar to your situation then I believe our article can be very helpful. I have a shared fence with my neighbor and we plan to share the cost of a new fence equally since it collapsed with strong winds a few months ago. The neighbor also has a pool. However, you can be right and still have to pay for the whole fence. Our neighbor just built a fence on the property line without any discussion with us that separates our 2 lower side yards, so we now have no access to the area under our side stairs. Thank you for your comment/ queston! However, the fence installed has a deep setback, meaning half our lots side yard has new fencing, and the other half has no fencing at all (dont think it ever did). ( Remember, we were never approached about this at all. Also, it would be good to know for the future in case it happens again. Surprisingly I get a txt from the neighbor that he doesnt approve of the vinyl fence and wants a wooden fence because he feels it makes his house look bad. (Personally, I think we paid for the whole fence for him.) Therefore I fully agree with you that your fence was not even close to the point of needing to be replaced. If you dont agree to her doing the job, which I would be very wary of and personally would never allow, then she has no choice but to pay for it all herself or you guys use a different contractor. The neighbor verbally agreed to this via texts and I sent quotes via texts. I live on a hill and a fence that is about 30 years old exists between my neighbor and me. area let me know and Ill go talk to him! Here is the Actual Law for those of you who like reading this sort of stuff CIVIL CODE Section 841, And for those of you who would rather read a laymans description of the California Good Neighbor Fence Law, here goes. The most common dispute is who will incur the costs and whether or not there should be a shared responsibility due to the equal benefit the fence will have. This morning we came to see that the townhouses HOA just took it upon themselves to remove the back wall so now we no longer have a back fence wall! Would have to agree with Potential Customer partly. Whether the climate is wet or dry, the walls must support the earth. There were no fences and the neighborhood kids played freely in the yards from house to house. The last thing you want is to be fined by city inspectors because you were found to be in violation of building codes. There is a brick wall between me and my neighbor. I do not think this qualifies for a Good neighbor fence. Revised on 02-04-2022 A retaining wall is a structure designed and constructed to resist the lateral pressure of soil, when there is a desired change in ground elevation that exceeds the angle of repose of the soil. Based on this minimum footing thickness, a retaining wall with a maximum retained wall height of 4 feet would correspond to maximum exposed wall height of 3 feet. The builder had built a fence between my neighbor and me ( there was no fence on that side of the neighbors property before). There is a large high substantial retaining wall holding back higher ground in the ownership of our client which is in poor condition. They are extremely weak and the most a customer should expect from them is a few years life. Theyre so close that the trunks of the trees have pushed against the lower fence rail and caused the fence to separate from one of the posts and lean into my yard. 13. walls and retaining walls supporting more than 6 feet (1.83 m) of backfill height due to design earthquake ground motions Due to the variability in soil properties throughout the County of Los Angeles, the design professional must take care in his or her analysis of basement and site retaining walls. For example, if the lower wall is three-feet . Im 21 year old I have put a little more then 1,400 in this fence (redwood) I told him 800+ was material we can go half on that. Although I know this is now besides the point, I would actually always recommend a custom built fence to the prefabricated fence panels they carry at big box stores. Their fence does nothing to secure my property. I stated I was not the owner at the time, but I was willing to pay half. Luckily, state law provides some guidance when it comes to fences, property lines, tree trimming, and more. The panel sits at about 8-9 ft off the ground. The neighbor does not want to share the cost to fix it, and states it is my sole responsibility. I know this is not exactly fair and therefore a situation like this is best handled by sitting down with your neighbor and trying to have a mature constructive conversation. If it is on your property and you are sure of it (please make 100% sure) then yes you can go ahead and do whatever you want with it, such as tear it down. Labor costs for . Yes, that is correct. Nat, yes you are correct. To keep the peace, we planted shrubs that created a barrier between our lawn and THEIR fence, so nobody can get to their fence from our side. My neighbour wants a retaining wall. Who has to pay? A week later, I came home to find a for sale sign in his lawn. Posts were like new pressure treated and totally solid as they had been replaced about 7 years ago. They replaced it a couple of times, and eventually changed the style to a more traditional looking front yard fence. Our left siding wall base are dropped to the two neighbors very end of their backyard. If he asks, and you dont want to pay for any of the fence I would just repeat what I have said here, and that should be the end of it! Is this situation an exception? RETAINING WALL Extreme II ELEVATION Extreme I Strength I Service I Q=1.00DC+1.00EV+1.00EH+1.00CT+Td Q=1.00DC+1.00EV+1.00EH+1.00EQD+1.00EQE+Td Q=aDC+BEV+1.50EH+1.75LS+Td Q=1.00DC+1.00EV+1.00EH+1.00LS+Td Anchor Design Load Vehicular Collision Force Soil inertia ignored for stem design Soil and Structure Components Inertia. retaining wall: [noun] a wall that is built to keep the land behind it from sliding. There hasnt been any communication at all from my neighbor Since from what youre saying he did none of the above, he has no legal backing to pursue any money from you. This height does not include the wall and depth of footing below grade. If it comes down to it you might need to get a restraining order against him. width: 50%; Nolo.com. who takes overall responsibility for all aspects of the design and field reviews for the Retaining Wall. California's Good Neighbor Fence Law RC Fences and Decks Dispute arising between neighbors over boundary fence? Are you trying to say the fence will be in the front yard and therefore is not necessary or does it extend from the backyard all the way through to the front. upper soil grade). : 2022121 california civil code 841 retaining wall 2022121 california civil code 841 retaining wall Two neighbors agreed to replace theirs and those are done; one neighbor is fighting it, saying it doesnt need to be replaced and is demanding a survey be done because they think the fence is entirely on their property and I dont have the right to touch it, even though the fence is in line with the other two neighbors (and the rest of the block). Who knows, if this were allowed to take place a neighbor could hire their cousin lets say and pay him whatever fee and then later claim the costs were way higher than actually paid in order to make him or his family member/ associate some extra money. We have a plant bed with a little two inch wooden retaining wall on our property to keep the soil in place. I gave them 15 days to accomplish this and also gave my phone number. Retaining wall responsibility | Legal Advice - LawGuru All other retaining wall construction will require a separate Building Permit.