If you have painted the neighbor's side of a wood fence can the neighbor make you replace it with a new wood fence?

Painting a Neighbor's Side of a Fence

If it's your fence, generally you can do what you want with it, but please remember that 'nuisance' law can apply here, particularly if the fence is considered an 'eyesore.'

Most fences are setback from the property line. This isn't really a trespassing issue and even if it were, it would only be because the fence itself were over the line. The fact that you crossed the line to paint the fence would not lead a court to tear down the fence.

More input from WikiAnswers Contributors:

• Yes. In order to paint "their side of the fence" one would have had to enter their private property. If this were done without permission, it would be trespassing. If the fence were painted, without the owner's permission, they can indeed sue, to have it replaced. And recover court costs and any other fees that are applicable.

• I think the above answer is wrong. There is always an implied "maintenance easement" that allows you to enter a neighbor's property to maintain your own. If the fence is on the painter's side of the property line, the neighbor has nothing to say about it, as long as nothing on his side of the line was damaged. UNLESS the fence is ON the property line and there is some sort of a shared ownership. In my hometown, there are several neighborhoods where there are driveways and garages that straddle the line and the structures are jointly owned. You often see these where one side of the garage is painted and kept in good repair and the other side is delapidated.

• Unless there is a boundary survey been done and property line been drawn to decide where the fense located, neighbors cannot say the fense is co-owned. Is that correct? And when one purchased the property, the contract said the owner has to maintain the fence, the contract does not say the owner shares responsibility with any other neighbor. And the contract does not say who's property the fense is located on. It only says the fense is around my property.

• It would depend on municipality ordinances governing such acts. What might be permitted (or legal) in Hoboken, might not be permitted in Toledo. Cities, towns, etc.make their own rules governing property right of ways, easements, etc. For instance, utility companies have access to private property to the extent it is needed to keep their systems(s) operating properly.

Additional Answer:

This is a test question in property law. Right?

Tossing in additional points, as a general rule, recovery for damage to property is more or less limited to the extent of the damage. Further, in this matter it appears that

"[it] is a rather well settled principle of the law that more is necessary to maintain a civil action than a simple breach of the duty. There must also be an injury. A breach of duty, without an injury, is legally referred to as a damnum absque injuria and is not actionable. Guyan Motors, Inc. v. Williams, 133 W. Va. 630, 57 S.E.2d 529 (1950)"

applies.

Next, the action is going to be so expensive and time consuming that the two could build a serpentine wall to rival the University of Virginia for what this is going to cost the parties.

Unless someone can show something really evil and intentional by painting a fence which nobody seems sure belongs to whom or where, (even then there has to be somekind of 'significant' damage) this one is going to get dismissed well before judgment.

Practically speaking, this is not a legal question which will ever be resolved in any kind of judical setting; it is a relationship question stemming from the age old adage: Good fences do good neighbors make.

Given that one seems to want a black letter law answer, the answer is no; no judge is about to order a new fence because someone put a coat of paint on one side and it wasn't his side to paint in the first place, maybe. (Of course, bad facts make for bad law.)

Lastly, I've never seen the building with two sides, I did see a hedge neatly trimmed half way to the property line, and the other side of the hedge, wild. The two argued for about 15 years about how far to clip into the hedge. The problem was solved when the property was sold; the new owner liked the hedge wild, too.

Additional Answer:

Does the fence belong to the neighbor? Probably not or why would you paint the side of the fence that is in the neighbors yard? You can put up any kind of fence you want and you want and it only has to meet zoning requirements. I don't know of any zoning laws that ask what color the fence is. Paint it any color you want your neighbor can not force you to replace it. If the neighbor doesn't like your fence then they need to put up a fence of their own so they don't have to look at it. City, town, borough etc regulations may require a certain standard as may home owner associations. Other than that however your fence is just that.

First answer by Claudia. Last edit by Lindajobo. Contributor trust: 0 [recommend contributor]. Question popularity: 182 [recommend question]