Neighbors and trees
How controversial do those words, neighbors and trees, sound to you? If you enter them into your browser, you might be surprised at the variety of sources that populate the search results. Many of them pointing to areas of contention when to comes to neighbors and trees.
Nextdoor.com brings the controversies into even sharper focus. Here is a sampling:
- My neighbor’s tree is leaning on our shared fence, pushing it down into my yard!
- The tree growing on the property next to me is dropping all kinds of pine needles and small branches in my yard. It is also a fire hazard.
- My neighbor’s oak tree has branches brushing on the roof of my garage and the roots are lifting the bricks in my patio.
- One of my neighbors came into my yard and cut down my young pine tree and threw it down in my grass.
As with many other things in life, laws are enacted to deal with dicey issues. Take California’s Code of Civil Procedure, chapter and verse dealing with Actions for Nuisance, Waste, and Willful Trespass, in Certain Cases, on Real Property – enacted in 1872. Trees and neighbors are a very old issue. Here is a snippet of what it says about trees and landowners:
Any person who cuts down or carries off any wood or underwood, tree, or timber, or girdles or otherwise injures any tree or timber on the land of another person, or on the street or highway in front of any person’s house, village, or city lot, or cultivated grounds… without lawful authority, is liable to the owner of such land… for treble the amount of damages which may be assessed therefor, in a civil action, in any Court having jurisdiction.
Can I cut down my neighbor’s tree if it is hanging over my property?
Nope. According to other aspects of California law, if a tree is in your neighbor’s yard but has branches and roots in your yard, you can cut only those overhanging branches or the roots that are coming onto your property. However, you might want to call an arborist, since that same law says you can’t cut your neighbor’s tree down, and you can’t cut the branches or roots back so far that it damages or kills the tree.
The irony here is that you have few legal options to force your neighbor to trim the tree that is on their property but causing a nuisance, or worse, on your property. Hence, all the squabbles and vented frustrations on nextdoor.com. You can’t even make your neighbor pay for the tree trimming you need done to remove the nuisance.
Now might be a good time to exercise a bit of diplomacy.
Diplomacy could prove to be your best option. When a shared property-line fence needs replacing, neighbors often negotiate a cost-sharing agreement. The same could be true for a tree-trimming operation. Of course, that would depend on the opinion of the tree owner, their feelings of responsibility (if any) and your existing relationship with that person. Neighborly neighbors can often work out a solution that proves to be fair and reasonable to both parties.
It is also good for both sides to keep in mind that if a diseased or neglected tree comes down on your neighbor’s property, if the tree was in your yard, you are responsible. The only exception might be a property-line tree that is growing right on the property line between two parcels of land. Then both are equally responsible.
Either way, you still have time to invite your neighbor to a friendly barbeque, while the weather holds!
The content in this blog post is not intended to and does not constitute legal advice and no attorney-client relationship is formed. Although every effort has been made to ensure the accuracy, completeness, adequacy or currency of the information contained in this post, it is not warranted or guaranteed. Please consult an attorney for any legal advice.