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kitty321 · Oct 16, 2011, 01:26 PM

About two years ago I purchased a home located in Clallam County, WA State. There is a hedge that runs down one side of the property line. At the time of purchase I asked the seller who owned the hedge; he said it was the neighbor's hedge. About one month after moving into my home, I hired a local fence company to put up a privacy fence to enclose my backyard. When the fence was put up, there was about a two foot clearance between the fence and the hedge. Now, two years later, the hedge is beginning to grow through my fence, and the neighbor has made no attempt to trim it back. On occasion, he has trimmed the top of the hedge but always leaves stray branches on the top portion on my side of the hedge. Also, any time he trims, he never cleans up any of the branch or leaf debris that falls on my property. I guess my question is: Doesn't my neighbor have a duty to maintain his hedge so that it does not create a nuisance on my property?

ScottGem · Oct 16, 2011, 01:53 PM

No. And the fact that you put up a fence, makes it arguably harder for him to trim your side of it.

But you have every right to trim any branches that grow through and above the fence. If the fence is not on the property line, you can go on the other side of the fence and trim anything that overlaps your property line.

Fr_Chuck · Oct 16, 2011, 02:13 PM

First you should know what and where the property line is. Have you never had it surveyed ? The hedge may well be on your property if you don't know for sure.

You can cut any part of the hedge that is on and over your property. So all you have to do is know where your property line is.

kitty321 · Oct 16, 2011, 02:35 PM

Well, the seller says it's the neighbor's hedge. It is obvious the hedge is on the property line because of the way my asphalt driveway and gravel parking section are. The hedge runs alongside my driveway and parking section. I have also read that if I trim the hedge and damage it in anyway, I am liable. So I'm not really of the mind to trim it as I have no knoweldge of trimming hedges. From what I have read, I think in WA State the owner is responsible for ensuring his plants, trees, shrubs do not create a nuisance. I guess I may have to contact a lawyer to find out for sure. Doesn't really make sense that a neighbor could plant a hedge and then force you to maintain it.

ScottGem · Oct 16, 2011, 03:37 PM

You aren't maintaining it, trimming is not maintaining. Also don't trust the seller as to where the property lines are. Go by the description in your deed or a survey.

It is true that if you damage the hedge you could be held liable. So if you are unsure how to trim it, hire a landscaper to show you how. Just clipping some branches that overhang your property should not do any damage.

What have you read? How is nuisance defined?

Fr_Chuck · Oct 16, 2011, 03:43 PM

I have never bought a house where the seller always knew where the properly line was, in fact most were wrong, as they were told by the people they bought it from and it was done by agreements.

In fact you don't even know for sure your fence is far enough from the real property line, you don't know for sure that you don't own the hedges.

kitty321 · Oct 16, 2011, 03:49 PM

Here is one blog that I came across: This is taken from the perspective of a hedge owner who thought his neighbor should be co-maintaining the hedge. There are a couple of other blogs I will post.

I am not an attorney but my husband IS. I read him your original post. He asked about the waist-high fence. Is that fence on your property? You noted that the hedge was inside your property line. My husband said that you are responsible for maintaining the hedge & the fence (if that also is inside your property line). If it's on your property... it's yours... period. If you can't maintain the hedge without trespassing on your neighbor's property... you must obtain their permission before entering their property to maintain the hedge. Your neighbor has no responsibility to maintain anything planted on your property. It does not matter whether the hedge was pre-existing when you purchased the property or whether your neighbor has previously pruned his side of the hedge... he has no responsibility to continue to do so. The only exception would be a legal, written document to the contrary which is unlikely. Your neighbor does have the RIGHT to prune away any of your plantings that might/are infringing on his property. But, again, he does not have to do so.

kitty321 · Oct 16, 2011, 03:55 PM

A landowner has a duty to prevent nuisances which might adversely affect the property of an adjoining landowner. A nuisance is a substantial interference with the right to use and enjoy land, which may be intentional, negligent or ultra hazardous in origin, and must be a result of a defendant's activity. If a nuisance interferes with another person's quiet or peaceful or pleasant use of his/her property, it may be the basis for a lawsuit for damages and/or an injunction ordering the person or entity causing the nuisance to stop or limit the activity. Abatement of a nuisance may involve elimination of a nuisance by removal, repair, rehabilitation or demolition. Liability to an adjoining landowner for injuries resulting from the improper use of one's property has been founded upon the legal theory of nuisance.

The encroachment of a hedge on the land of an adjoining landowner causing damage could be held to be a nuisance and result in damages against the landowner on which the hedge was located. A landowner is generally held to the duty of common prudence in maintaining hedges on his or her property in such a way as to prevent injury to his or her neighbor's property. Encroaching trees and plants may be regarded as a nuisance when they cause actual harm or pose an imminent danger of actual harm to adjoining property. In such a case, the owner of the hedge may be held responsible for harm caused by it, and may also be required to cut back the encroaching branches or roots, assuming the encroaching vegetation constitutes a nuisance. Real damage must be shown to result from the encroaching hedge and leaves.

Generally, however, in cases where hedges belonging to one property owner damage or destroy adjacent property, the hedge owner is only responsible for damage if some failure to maintain the hedge contributed to the damage. If the damage was solely the result of a thunderstorm or act of God, the hedge owner will not be responsible, as the damage could not have been foreseen. If the hedge owner allows the hedge to grow so that it uproots the fence, it would be considered an encroachment onto the adjacent property. In that instance, the hedge owner would be required to remove the offending hedge. A boundary hedge is one planted on the boundary line itself and should not be removed without mutual agreement. Leaves which fall off and end up on adjacent property are considered a natural occurrence and are the responsibility of the landowner on whose property they ultimately come to rest.

Property owners in every state have the right to cut off branches and roots that stray into their property, in most cases this is the only help that is provided by the law, even when damage from a tree is substantial. A property owner who finds a neighbor's hedge encroaching must first warn or give notice to the hedge owner prior to commencing work and give the hedge owner the chance to correct the problem. If the hedge owner does nothing, the tree can still be trimmed. As a general rule, a property owner who trims an encroaching hedge belonging to a neighbor can trim only up to the boundary line and must obtain permission to enter the hedge owner's property, unless the branches threaten to cause imminent and grave harm. Additionally, the property owner cannot cut the entire hedge down and cannot destroy the structural integrity or the cosmetic symmetry and appeal of a hedge by improper trimming. Local laws should be consulted for applicable requirements in your area.

Please see the information at the following links:

http://definitions.uslegal.com/n/nuisance/
http://definitions.uslegal.com/t/trees/
http://lawdigest.uslegal.com/real-estate-laws/neighbor-relations/7364/
http://lawdigest.uslegal.com/real-estate-laws/boundary,-property-and-title-disputes/7352/

kitty321 · Oct 16, 2011, 04:01 PM

When the fencing company put up the fence they actually did check the property boundaries to make sure the fence was within my property boundaries so they said the fence was actually set about one foot back from the property line. That being said the neighbor's hedge would be encroaching about 4 feet onto my property.

kitty321 · Oct 16, 2011, 04:03 PM

In addition, in WA State a fence can actually encroach two inches over the property line.

ScottGem · Oct 16, 2011, 04:10 PM

The last paragraph in post 8 is the one that covers most situations. The rest of the quotes refer to a nuisance as causing damage. Which doesn't appear to be the case. It also affirms your right to trim.

kitty321 · Oct 16, 2011, 04:28 PM

You're right. But the thing is I don't want to have to trim his hedge and it doesn't appear I have any duty to do so. So I guess I'll put a letter in their mailbox requesting that they trim the hedge and then wait and see if they do. If they don't, I think I will speak with a lawyer to see if I can hire someone to trim it and bill it to the neighbors. If not, I will wait until it damages the fence, which it will, and pursue it then.

kitty321 · Oct 16, 2011, 04:32 PM

I think, actually, that the hedge does cause a potential danger of causing harm to the fence, thereby damaging my property so I think I can require that he maintain or trim his hedge.

ScottGem · Oct 16, 2011, 04:35 PM

I believe you can hire someone and bill them. The problem is if they refuse to pay you will have to sue. And that is not going to make for good neighborly relations.

ScottGem · Oct 16, 2011, 04:51 PM

Originally Posted by kitty321

I think, actually, that the hedge does cause a potential danger of causing harm to the fence, thereby damaging my property so I think I can require that he maintain or trim his hedge.

Its not what you think. You would have to get a professional fence builder to attest that hedge poses a danger to the fence.

And again, you have to consider you will continue to live next door to these people.

kitty321 · Oct 16, 2011, 04:53 PM

Well, I can't say that they are really on their best foot for making good neighborly relations at this point either. There was a reason I put a fence up you know. :)

kitty321 · Oct 16, 2011, 05:04 PM

It's pretty easy to get a professional fence builder since I just had a professional fence builders put the fence up two years ago. It's obvious that a hedge growing too close and through a fence will damage it. I don't need a professional to validate that. You're not even suppose to have shrubbery within 16 inches of your house because air cannot circulate properly, which leads to damp wood and rot. As for living next to the neighbors, I don't even know what their names are and like I said before so far they aren't really "neighbors of the year" themselves.

ScottGem · Oct 16, 2011, 05:51 PM

Originally Posted by kitty321

It's obvious that a hedge growing too close and through a fence will damage it. I don't need a professional to validate that.

Umm, yeah you do. Even a small claims court is not going to take your word for it. It also depends on the type of fence.

kitty321 · Oct 16, 2011, 06:56 PM

Do you own a hedge by any chance?

ScottGem · Oct 17, 2011, 03:10 AM

As a matter of fact, I do, though its not on the property line. There are also plantings along the side of my neighbors house that grow over the fence onto the walkway on my side that I routinely trim.

I'm not saying a hedge can't damage a fence, but I am saying a court is not going to take your word that it might cause damage. You need to either have photographic evidence of the damage or an expert's opinion that the potential for damage is there.