When buying a home, what happens when a home survey shows that a neighbor crosses your property line?

Question

Part of a neighbor's home crosses the property line of the home we want to buy. What should we do pre or post contract?

Answer 1

The title company should help you. You would require that the current owner get some sort of agreement from the neighbor acknowledging this and agreeing that it is not their property. If it is a small thing like a fence or flower bed is two or three inches off the line then it is very common and probably not a big deal.

If the house itself or an in-ground pool is constructed partially on your future property then it is much more rare and serious-usually what happens in that case is a legal agreement has to be made on several levels-between the two owners, with the local government, and with the mortgage companies of both houses. That would be very complicated and you would want an attorney representing you to help you sort this out. (or back out of the transaction before closing).

Answer 2

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Answer 3

Negotiate! You have an advantage. If the neighbor wants to settle with the current owner,you can renegotiate the price. If the neighbor wants to negotiate with you you might be able to get some sort of monetary settlement from them. In any case the value of the property is lessened by the encroachment and the final answer will probably involve the neighbor purchasing some of the lot. This should at least result in a tax reduction on the property you intend to buy.

Answer 4

You should be fine as long as your attorney uses adverse possession as your defense. In Texas there are several methods and restrictions but since the house as been there since 1950 it's covered on all of them. If there is a fence that has been in place for a similar length of time or at least 10 years for most adverse possession then it can stay too. The property line will change granting you ownership of the disputed land. It doesn't matter that there are new owners, they will be bound by the adverse possession as well, the clock starts ticking when the house was built, or a fence goes up. What they may be able to do is have you pay for any property tax they paid on the four feet. How far back they can claim will be up to Texas law.

Answer 5

It's really a case of mind over matter..if you don't mind, it don't matter. Does the encroachment effect the property value or inconvenience you in some way? If not forgetaboutit, if it does, buy somewhere else.

On my first house, I had an old garage that was 2 feet into my neighbors property and I had another neighbor I though has placed his property fence on my land. Being it was a large parcel, I didn't care either way and neither did my neighbors or the guy who bought my property.

Some states have homestead type laws that if someone squats on your land, keeps it up and you don't object, they get your land. Happened to my father-in-law in Alabama.

Contact an attorney if it bugs you, but getting your neighbor to move his house is going to be a chore.

Answer 6

You should talk to an attorney before buying the property. I would not buy a property under those terms. Many areas have ordinances that prevent owners from building within x feet of the property line. Certainly no one is permitted to build over the line. Are you sure about the line? Don't you think the other owner will challenge your assertion that the line runs through their house?

Answer 7

Talk to your "future" neighbor, show him the survey and see what you can agree on before you close on the property. Whatever agreement you achieve should be put in writing and recorded with the deed. Title Company probably will have a problem in isueing the Title Insurance Policy under circumstances like that anyway.
My advise "Talk to your neighbor" and see that you together can solve the problem.

Answer 8

I imagine you could make them move the fence or whatever part of their property oversteps your boundary

Answer 9

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