13 years ago we bought two lots in a golfing community to build as a weekend/retirement place. We never got around to it. Several years ago we put them on the market, not surprising never sold. Then put them on the back burner. We contacted a realtor a few days ago to re-list them, everything going according to plan...................

................'til today: I got a call. The realtor checked the county docs and overlayed the plat to his drone pics and looks like my neighbor has allegedly built part of his driveway and half his garage on my property. (I bought 2004, he built 2013)

Well, we ordered a new survey. Methinks he just bought himself a lot. The lots are long and thin and I can't carve out property even if I were willing to do so.

Oh well. We'll wait for Richard Dawson.....

quote:

Originally posted by FMC:
13 years ago we bought two lots in a golfing community to build as a weekend/retirement place. We never got around to it. Several years ago we put them on the market, not surprising never sold. Then put them on the back burner. We contacted a realtor a few days ago to re-list them, everything going according to plan...................

................'til today: I got a call. The realtor checked the county docs and overlayed the plat to his drone pics and looks like my neighbor has allegedly built part of his driveway and half his garage on my property. (I bought 2004, he built 2013)

Well, we ordered a new survey. Methinks he just bought himself a lot. The lots are long and thin and I can't carve out property even if I were willing to do so.

Oh well. We'll wait for Richard Dawson.....

That sucks.

Hopefully he will pony some $$ and buy your lot.

Mike

I don't understand.....he either pays or it gets torn up, no-brainer.

I wouldn't be so quick to do the money dance. If he gets a good lawyer, he may be able to claim pre-emptive use under Texas Law. I am not a lawyer and certainly am not taking his side of the dispute, but if someone fences in your property and treats it as his for many years in Texas, he owns it. It's a complicated issue which, hopefully, you won't have to fight out in court. I would use a soft approach and suggest arbitration.

The concept is adverse possession and I believe under Texas law, you're looking at a 10 year statute of limitation under the facts you've described, but it can be much shorter. You'll definitely want to speak with a qualified real estate lawyer.

Texas Statutory Period for Adverse Possession
Every state has a slightly different statutory period for which a trespasser must occupy the land in order to claim title. Most states have just one period – for example, 20 years. Texas is more complicated, with a few different potential statutory periods that might apply depending on the circumstances.

Under Tex. Civ. Prac. & Rem. Code § 16.024, the trespasser can bring a claim of adverse possession after three years. However, he or she must establish “color of title” – meaning that the trespasser has some sort of deed or conveyance, albeit perhaps a mistaken one, that shows that he or she is a record title owner.

An example of this would be a trespasser who duly purchased a property, and the deed mistakenly indicated that his purchase included part of a neighbor’s land. He occupies that part of the mistaken land for three years under the assumption that he bought it, and the neighbor says nothing. In this situation, after three years, he could bring a claim under § 16.024 to actually acquire that land under adverse possession.

Under Tex. Civ. Prac. & Rem. Code § 16.025, the trespasser can bring a claim of adverse possession after five years. Here, adverse possession can be established in a similar manner as § 16.024, with the added factors of showing “cultivation” of the land and payment of taxes. In other words, if a trespasser cares for a piece of land and also pays property taxes on that land, these weigh in favor of giving him or her record title after a five-year period.

Under Tex. Civ. Prac. & Rem. Code § 16.026, the trespasser can bring suit within ten years without any sort of tax payments or “color of title.” However, the claimant must be able to establish all other standard elements of adverse possession – open, exclusive, continual, actual and hostile possession of the land. By statute, any land acquired under this provision is limited to 160 acres.

Example: Imagine that Matt and Monica live next to one another in Austin. There is no dividing fence or apparent boundary between their yards. Matt builds a shed that is actually on Monica’s side of the property, covering about ten square feet of earth. Monica doesn’t say anything. Matt uses the shed as if it were on his own land. He does this for 11 years. Under the rubric described above, Matt can probably establish that he “owns” the land on which he was encroaching. Monica could have stopped Matt by asking, over those 11 years, that he remove his shed, or sign a rental agreement to show that this was an arrangement that they mutually consented to. But Texas courts won’t let her suddenly eject Matt after she failed to exercise her rights for more than a decade.


From a layman's point of view, if you have been paying the taxes then your neighbor hasn't met the statutory period for adverse possession yet. I'd get a lawyer quickly.

Yeah,if you are making the property taxes then you have written proof of ownership.I have a problem on my place that divides the county line + they keep moving it. My new (10 years ago neighbor) moved in + when the new survey was done it seems that half of her driveway in in my property.My son had the idea + she agreed to just trade out a pie shaped section from one to the other. I don't care about her driveway but I would like to increase my property closer to my home.Still needs a new survey though.It is a shame to have to pay for the counties fxxk ups.

In this part of NY adverse possession was handled differently than the rest of the state. That created cases of land 'theft' that was at least certainly not ethical if not illegal. My friend was involved and after lots of work , some others who suffered and an interested representative the law was eventually changed and now conforms to the rest of the state. Hard work, good lawyer and good rep made it work !

Waiting on the survey. It's been less than 5 years so if indeed it looks like below it is encroachment. My attorney says case law is definitive, depending upon the amount of encroachment will clarify damage model.

FYI can't build within 7' of land border. You can't split up a lot so it's an all or none deal.

Their title co. is the one who's fucked, But it'll go from title co. -> title insurance -> builder -> surveyor

I have no intention in being a dick- we were both wronged. The goal is to make my headache become their headache ASAP and let them deal with the above.

That’s no small mistake. The encroaching house looks too wide to even fit on the owner’s lot with 7’ setbacks. Lots of people should have caught this error from the get-go.

The real shame is that they're great lots together. These lots are on the top of a ridge with a steep slope just past the perimeter with an awesome view of the valley.

As one goes from top to bottom the property slopes downwards and there is a greenway on the bottom upon which you can't build. My intention was to have a driveway enter from the bottom into an "underground" garage with an infinity pool overlooking the greenway and valley.

I had no intention of separating and selling the two lots individually unless the more desirable (bottom left) went first. So this cloud may have a silver lining. The only real legal question to be answered is: do I have the right to resurvey the two and present as one lot as were my initial intentions or not. Prolly not as it was not pre exisiting. But again the only advantage I really want to gain is the sale of the lesser lot and for what it's worth (survey & atty fees). Not a penny more

..............but it'd sure be fun to shop up at a mediation with me face timing a crew with a back hoe being raised to their roof and mysteriously losing connection!!!

quote:

Originally posted by ForrestB:
That’s no small mistake. The encroaching house looks too wide to even fit on the owner’s lot with 7’ setbacks. Lots of people should have caught this error from the get-go.

I agree with Forrest, look at what's left of 43886 lot. With a further 7' setback from where they built their garage, there is not enough room to site a house on the remainder of the lot. If you can't split the 43886 lot, it looks like your neighbor just bought it. I wonder what your neighbor can get out of the title company, surveyor and insurance company.

The message here is, if you own property, better inspect it regularly. that house didn't go up over night.

Grizz

Yep,looks like the surveyor dropped the ball (maybe) = the county (also maybe).This is what I'm talking about on my land as well,+ not just the property lines but the county lines as well.The ariels from Travis + Williamson are not the same.We go around +around every year.I bought the adjoining 5 acres (the lot w/ the driveway issue)simply because like you,it had a helluva a view into the valley + I did'nt want any one moving in next door. Now I believe in being a good neighbor but that needs to be resipricated.On the other side of the property some yahoo from Dallas bought the place,never moved out there but the 1st thing he did was set up a mercury lamp from the power co. Kinda ruined our nights,so we just shot it out.

Now along the same 'good neighbor' lines. That same property was sold a few years later (original buyer never moved in).Anyway down at the bottom of my property in the valley I have had a shooting range set up since Jesus was a choirboy.Concrete pillbox backstop/caliche filled w/ railroad ties in the front + then covered by caliche along w/ concrete bench's at 25 yd. increments back to 100 yds.Now this new guy builds his house right behind my backstop.Mildly pissed me off as I let lots of folks use the range for free but I don't need to be sued by some one else's stupidity. So no more free range use ...yet. Again being in the good neighbor mode I just moved the range 180 degrees + put a stock tank in where the old range was.The new neighbor on the 'new' side put up her horse barn behind the back stop.So many folks that lack common sense are getting paid by those of us that do.

Norman, we had folks do that at a couple of established shooting ranges up here.

They were even caught on record saying they did it to get rid of the range. They didn't lie the noise, thought it hurt property values.

IMO, they got the land cheap due to the preexisting structure, they assume the hazard of building where some accidental damage will occur, their liability... but the law doesn't agree with me.

We used to have one of the best ranges in the Central Tx. area at the corner of 360 + 2222. Hell,even pres. Regan came out here to shoot. Developers came in + the rest is bad history.I have enough property to move the range once again + have done so,but that is most likely just a matter of time as well.Meanwhile the 'values' on my property tax statements goes up drastically every year. I will stop here because I could make an entire forum on property tax issuses

FMC,

Did anything happen with this?

It's a case of do you believe me or your lyin eyes. I dunno, kinda still looks fd up to me but kosher according to survey.....