Venting: About my neighbor

[musical comedy]

Sometimes it just helps to vent even though nobody can help me with this.

I have the neighbor from hell. She is just a downright loathsome individual. I have 44 private acres, but it's a 'flag lot'. Some of you may not know that term, but if interested this explains it. https://www.landrushnow.com/what-is-a-flag-lot

The neighbor's house sits in front near the road. She doesn't need to use my driveway to get to her house. She does however have rights to use the driveway to get to one of her lower pastures.

At present, I am not sure wtf she is doing and why, but she is ripping up a couple of her pastures, adding new soil (which looks like rocky crap), and having it leveled. She is apparently improving her pastures, but why that is poses another question. I can't get into all of her craziness over the 25+ years she has lived in front of me.

Now to the problem. The big trucks that are bringing in this new soil have wrecked my driveway and also my grass on both sides. They basically had no choice, because they had to make a really tight turn to get into her fields.

Within the last two years, we had our driveways newly stoned and leveled. Now because of her, a portion needs to be redone along with some landscaping work to the grassy area.

There is absolutely nothing I can do about this. I know all too well how fruitless it would be to try to enlist legal help. This woman knows how to beat the system. You just wouldn't believe stuff she has done.

It's probably going to cost me 5k minimum to fix this mess.

On top of that, when these trucks unload, it sounds like an atom bomb going off. It's a huge truck. So far there have been many loads each day. Sometimes they unload while I am riding, it scares the horse and me.

[Moutaineer]

I have this "gaming the system" neighbor, too, so I feel your pain.

[Tanga]

Wow. How can she destroy your driveway and not pay for it? No local laws to demand this instead of having to sue her?

[piedmontfields]

She does however have rights to use the driveway to get to one of her lower pastures.

This is the terrible part of this situation. I have had some shared driveway access before (where 3 of us households split the cost for maintenance of the main access road to our 600 meter driveway or however far one needed to go to get to the private drive). But something like this is a reason not to buy a property (I'm assuming it is in the deed or some such).

I'm sorry you're having such a crappy time. Be safe with/on your horse.

[Quelah]

I'm so sorry you're dealing with this, Ive seen stuff like that be an absolute nightmare. One of my criteria when we were buying property was no shared driveways, no easements. So yeah, we front the road, and traffic goes by. So worth it. I'll say it so you don't have to, she's been there 25 years, maybe she'll just DIE and you won't have to deal with her anymore!

[musical comedy]

I'll say it so you don't have to, she's been there 25 years, maybe she'll just DIE and you won't have to deal with her anymore!

I'm glad you said it for me.

Here's the thing. We should have known there could be a problem, but it is just one of the things we overlooked. As I said, the person living in front has no need to use my driveway except to get into her back field. She would only have to do that to mow, which she never did.

When we first moved here, the person living in the front house was a horse friend and his girl friend. In fact, he was the person that alerted me to this property being available. Then, he and girlfriend broke up, he married someone else and moved. Then I got this crazy lady.

In my experience and opinion, there is nothing anyone can do in situation like this. People can do all sorts of things and get away with them. Let's suppose there was a law or a suit and I won. What can force this woman to pay to fix the driveway? Nothing. She just would ignore the ruling. A best, she would have it fixed poorly and claim she satisfied the charges.

In past years, she has called the police on us many times with false reports. Once she claimed my late husband tried to run her over with his tractor. She has tried to force us to get a new survey ($$) claiming we had stuff on her property. When her fences come down or her horses got loose, she blamed me. The incidents between us are many. She really hated my husband and has left me pretty much alone since he died, thank goodness.

Her property is a filthy dump. It devalues mine. She has two pasture ornament horses and some sheep that are barely taken care of. Why she has animals I have no clue because she is never home.

To top it off, she is active in township politics, so she has some clout in some ways. I imagine those of you that are reading this are but I am literally sick over this. It's affecting me greatly. Mostly because I really have my hands full here on the farm alone.

[Flight]

How stressful MC, from the photos I've seen you have such a beautiful property and that would take away some of the shine. Those people are so difficult to deal with.

[Koolkat]

I'll say it so you don't have to, she's been there 25 years, maybe she'll just DIE and you won't have to deal with her anymore!

I'm glad you said it for me.

Here's the thing. We should have known there could be a problem, but it is just one of the things we overlooked. As I said, the person living in front has no need to use my driveway except to get into her back field. She would only have to do that to mow, which she never did.

When we first moved here, the person living in the front house was a horse friend and his girl friend. In fact, he was the person that alerted me to this property being available. Then, he and girlfriend broke up, he married someone else and moved. Then I got this crazy lady.

In my experience and opinion, there is nothing anyone can do in situation like this. People can do all sorts of things and get away with them. Let's suppose there was a law or a suit and I won. What can force this woman to pay to fix the driveway? Nothing. She just would ignore the ruling. A best, she would have it fixed poorly and claim she satisfied the charges.

In past years, she has called the police on us many times with false reports. Once she claimed my late husband tried to run her over with his tractor. She has tried to force us to get a new survey ($$) claiming we had stuff on her property. When her fences come down or her horses got loose, she blamed me. The incidents between us are many. She really hated my husband and has left me pretty much alone since he died, thank goodness.

Her property is a filthy dump. It devalues mine. She has two pasture ornament horses and some sheep that are barely taken care of. Why she has animals I have no clue because she is never home.

To top it off, she is active in township politics, so she has some clout in some ways. I imagine those of you that are reading this are but I am literally sick over this. It's affecting me greatly. Mostly because I really have my hands full here on the farm alone.

You have my sympathies, we have a very difficult family closest to us. They ran off the builders of our home with the animus, the 2nd family got along with them better, but still had to do some "heavy lifting" (of their garbage) to be comfortable living next to them. We had a lot of issues with them early on - animal neglect most notably, but I had animal control out and they haven't had large animals in years. Still can't abide them in close quarters (just laugh in wonder at their garbage when we drive by), but we've learned how to ignore them, they will not control our lives. We love living here and intend to keep it that way. If you weren't on the other side of the country, I'd come help you out now and then for a horsie nose kiss. Best, KK

[Amado]

Does she have legal access to use your driveway? Can you gate and fence it?

[texsuze]

Seconding what Amado asks. Pipe fence or some type of heavy duty fencing, if the driveway is entirely owned by you. Is the survey you had to undertake recent enough to suffice for a fence builder to use?

We, too, have butt-lick neighbors adjacent to us (see my "barking dog" thread) so I totally feel your stress level. Yesterday one of their mongrels, yet again, managed to get onto our property.
I spent an hour checking the common fenceline but couldn't determine how this 'tripod' dog made its way onto our land. It's beyond me how folks can live their lives like white trash cretins and be oblivious to the rights of others, or worse, spend tons of what little brain power they have to devise punitive ways to impact others.

We have a second property, about 20 minutes from where we live, which is totally landlocked. We have two legal easements, described in the county records, which cut across neighbors' pastures to access two different sides of our place. Thankfully we have a very good relationship with the neighbor whose pasture we must drive across--not easy to do since we are 'auslanders', and bought the property from locals who are many generations entrenched in the area We always announce ourselves and check in advance in case pastures are too muddy, etc. to travel so we don't shred their (overgrazed ) cow pasture.

[musical comedy]

Perhaps you missed it, but I wrote in the first post that the neighbor has the right to use the driveway to get into her pasture. It's in the deed, survey or whatever document.

Even if this wasn't the case, there is no way I could put up a gate or fence. How would delivery people to get my place? I guess you don't understand how this driveway is situated.

[Koolkat]

MC - When the property behind us was razed to put in a McMansion, the contractor accidently did some damage to our fence line. We had a discussion about it. He fixed it. I have to wonder if you call the company and complain about property damage, if they wouldn't do at least some effort to make it right. I assume the company is the liable one, not your neighbor, even if they are working for her. At the very least, they have a PR issue. You can complain on YELP, too, some firms are very sensitive to this. Just don't respond emotionally, even if you include the fact that it is very distressing.

[musical comedy]

I don't know who 'the company' is. What I think is happening is she hired some independent guy that has rented some of the rollers and big machines. That independent guy hired some trucker to bring in the soil. I went up and tried to talk to the trucker, and he barely spoke english, had no name on his truck, and wasn't interested in my complaint. Mumbled something about talk to the other guy. I assume he meant the heavy machine guy. The work is a bit of a jaunt from my house, so things would have to be well-timed. Besides, I'm relatively sure none of these people care. They would point to the crazy lady as the person to contact. I don't even want her to see me talking to them. Believe, me, I am not exaggerating about what this lady is capable of doing. If she gets on a campaign to cause problems for a foe, look out.

[Tarlo Farm]

Amado and Tex: "She does however have rights to use the driveway to get to one of her lower pastures"

[Tarlo Farm]

MC, make sure you have video every time you have contact with crazy lady. Check if you have a shirt pocket your phone will peek out of while it records. And document every contact with her. Every one.

Tex, what's so special about a piece of property you'd buy that was totally landlocked?

[texsuze]

"Tex, what's so special about a piece of property you'd buy that was totally landlocked?"

Excellent habitat for an endangered bird species (actually down-listed last year) with many documented breeding pairs on our place, great amount of plant diversity for this part of our county (which we don't really have on the property where we live), plus an awesome viewscape. One of our Parks & Wildlife biologists described it as "an oasis in a goat wasteland". That's special enough for us

[Koolkat]

Excellent habitat for an endangered bird species (actually down-listed last year) with many documented breeding pairs on our place, great amount of plant diversity for this part of our county (which we don't really have on the property where we live), plus an awesome viewscape. One of our Parks & Wildlife biologists described it as "an oasis in a goat wasteland". That's special enough for us

THAT is exceedingly cool!

[Amado]

Perhaps you missed it, but I wrote in the first post that the neighbor has the right to use the driveway to get into her pasture. It's in the deed, survey or whatever document.

Even if this wasn't the case, there is no way I could put up a gate or fence. How would delivery people to get my place? I guess you don't understand how this driveway is situated.

I missed the part about the rights. I did look at the photo, (how incredibly long your driveway is) but I didn’t think about deliveries. How frustrating for you, I am sorry.

[Hayburner]

Musical - I'm sorry you have this burden of neighbor to deal with more than you'd like.

I can understand your not wanting to stir the pot with her, with someone like her you never know what she will do to retaliate.

KoolKat had an excellent suggestion about having the contractor fix it. But, since you don't know who she hired, Do you think you could muster up the strength to call her and lightly mention the damage the workers did ? Then ask her for their name and number? Let her know you are not blaming her but want the damage repaired by those responsible.

You'd have to suck it up and butter her up a bit, but if it gets the damage fixed it would be worth your swallowing thru it....

Or you could contact the town supervisors, which she has an in with and tell them "someone" damaged your property, you don't who but they were working on your neighbors pasture. Maybe they could ask her for the contractors name? This is more far fetched but it might work too.

Good Luck and I hope you get a resolve. Since the contractor has equipment it would be nothing for him to fix it and he may not even know damage was done at all by the truck driver he hired.

[Tarlo Farm]

"Tex, what's so special about a piece of property you'd buy that was totally landlocked?"

Excellent habitat for an endangered bird species (actually down-listed last year) with many documented breeding pairs on our place, great amount of plant diversity for this part of our county (which we don't really have on the property where we live), plus an awesome viewscape. One of our Parks & Wildlife biologists described it as "an oasis in a goat wasteland". That's special enough for us

VERY cool, and good on you! Endangered species everywhere thank you, I'm sure!

[Quelah]

That's awesome about your property and the habitat but it gave me a giggle. Coastal differences. In California, that would have STOPPED me buying the property. We have some endangered species here, and one of the holy grail endangered animals passes through time to time but I'm all whistling innocently "Nope never seen one, got a picture? I'm not even sure what they look like."

Here having something like that would probably get you eminent domained of the land by the environmental people.

[texsuze]

Not to hijack this thread, since "dookie" neighbor issues are intensely frustrating, as we're currently experiencing, but,
Quelah, when we bought this property, the plant diversity was actually the initial attraction. Shortly afterwards, a birder guru friend commented on the habitat structure--'textbook' breeding ground for what was (until last year) one of two endangered bird species who migrate here each spring breed in this state. Although we're not officially registered with USF&W, the state parks biologists conducted the breeding pair surveys at our request. Plus, we've had many of our nature geek buddies out to do some photography and check this bird off their life list. I get what you're saying about those 'invisible' endangered species! Our state has a checkered history WRT endangered species on private lands.

[fallingwaters]

I had that neighbor too, and he was a factor in selling my farm. In hindsight I wish I'd set up a shell company and just bought him out. It would have been a better investment than the house renovation, and saved us years of aggravation.

[Tarlo Farm]

FW, I know someone else who did a similar thing.

[musical comedy]

Actually, we did consider buying this property before the neighbor from hell bought it. When we went into the house, we just could not see any reasonable way to renovate it. It's an old house. The one bathroom was installed in an area such that only a midget could use it. The house would have to be gutted pretty much. Right now, she lives in what I would call squalor. Our plan would have been to buy it and then change the boundaries so that we would have enough frontage to qualify for farmland preservation.

The latest is that the excavator working there said he was going to fix up the road. I'll believe it when I see it. He left me his card and I called him. He said he had stopped by to discuss what needed to be done. Huh? Isn't it self explanatory? I mean, he saw the driveway before it got ruined. I don't know what comes next. I don't think the driveway work can be done in Winter, but then I don't know. Certainly in the rainy Spring is not a good time either. Once he finishes this job, he's going to leave.

I also don't know what this neighbor is planning to do now with 2 pastures leveled in dirt. She would I assume plant grass. I doubt she could do this by hand, so that might mean bringing in more trucks to deliver and plant seed. Therefore, if I get the driveway fixed, it could be ruined a second time.

I was thinking of seeing if there was some way I could remove the easement off my deed. However, this woman is the type that would use the driveway anyway, knowing there is nothing I could do about it. As I've said, she knows how to work the system.

It's gives me some idea of what drove Michael Barisone to the edge.