Property Line Dispute--Cul-De-Sac?

Question

HELP! We bought our first house this summer. It is on a cul-de-sac. The driveway leading is quite narrow, only room for one car and short, so you can't park two cars end-to-end without blocking the sidewalk. We began to park our second car to the right of our driveway, in the grass, planning to pave or put down gravel later. Our neighbors placed a rock in the path soon after. We went to them to ask if parking there was a problem. They said that the property line dissected the path we were pulling through to park, so if we would just pull around the rock, they'd be happy. We have done so since then. Now they have pulled a flatbed trailer in the grass where we have parked. They have a large two car garage and a wide driveway. We plan to have a survey done as soon as possible, but I'd love any suggestions on this. If we park on the street, we will always end up blocking someone's mailbox, resulting in no mail delivery. HELP!!! :)

We do have a copy of the plat--it's difficult to read, but it shows that we are using our land when we park where we have been. As mentioned, the properties in our cul-de-sac are pie shaped--the back yards are quite large, but we are very short on front yard space. The drive is quite steep and short, so lengthening it is not an option. Widening it may be, but not without an official survey. We also were given an unofficial layout of the property at closing. This showed us that we were within our rights to park where we are. The neighbors have an identical copy and still choose to infringe upon our land. We figured we can't stop them since the paperwork is not official. Incidentally, the plat of the land also shows that our lovely neighbors own driveway, which is very large, intrudes into the next lot by several yards. I don't know the details of that arrangement, but the neighboring property happens to be a duplex.

Answer 1

Sounds like you have a rather sorry mess on your hands. Typically properties on a cul-de-sac are 'pie shaped'. It sounds to me like you got a rather small piece of that pie.

Did you not inquire of the property boundaries before you made this purchase ?

At any rate, you should be able to reasonably determine whether your neighbors are correct by obtaining a copy of your land plat from the local land office. If this land plat indicates that the neighbors are probably correct, save your money on the survey. It won't change anything. If the neighbors are getting 'property grabby' according to the land plat, then it's time to get a survey and stake your claim to what is legitimately yours.

Answer 2

I don't know how you managed to buy the property without a current survey. All the lending companies in this area require one showing all buildings and distances to the property lines, drives, easements of record and a number of other things.

If there is no way to get one vehicle behind the house, I don't really know what to suggest. Is there no room to lengthen the driveway? But don't do that without a survey, either. Don't put up or make anything without it or you may end up with more problems than you have now.