My Neighbor Mows Some of My Lawn

[DaRube]

....probably saves me a half hour per mowing.

He actually used to mow the entire 5 acres closest to him (I have 10 ac altogether) ... as the previous owners weren't into it. After I moved in and got my tractor, I said that I wanted to take care of it .... from the pride of taking care of my own place, as well as the pleasure of the tractor time.

So he discontinued doing the biggest part of that area, but he still does a smaller section....near our shared driveway. Perhaps he does it for cosmetic reasons, as that section is actually closer to his house than it is to mine, and he gives it a very nice manicured cut.

Does anyone see any downsides to him continuing to do this ... legal or otherwise? Or should I just let him continue with it since it makes him happy?

 

[Von]

As long as he knows that it is your property and that he cuts it at his expense and at his own risk. I don't see a problem with it. I had two neighbors doing the same thing to me at my antique shop. I sent them both this same letter:

This is to inform you that you are cutting grass on my property. I have no problems with you continuing to do so, but by allowing you to cut the grass I am not giving up any of my rights, ownership or title to such property. Also I am not granting you any rights or ownership to said property. You have no rights to use my property for any reason. You may not park, store, plant or place anything on my property. You may not construct any fences or remove any trees on my property. Any cutting that you do, you do at your own expense and at your own risk. I am not responsible for any cost or injury that you may incure while cutting said property. If you have any questions regarding this matter feel free to contact me. Thank you for your cooperation in this matter.

They both stopped cutting the grass after they got the letter. Seems their only interest in doing this was to make a claim on that property after a time since they were maintaining it. By sending a letter it starts the clock back to zero and it would take another 6 years before they could claim the land as theirs. So write a letter and that will see what your neighbor has in mind. If he stops cutting it, he just wants to make a claim that its his. If he continues to cut it, great less for you to do!

 

[mdbarb]

There are definitly legal ramifications. ie. adverse possesion, precriptive easement etc. Worst case scenario: he gets the land he maintains. See the thread: Help! I need legal advice re: easements to see the nightmare I'm in.
The easiest way to avoid future problems is to have him sign a brief aggreement so there is no misunderstanding about who owns the property. This isn't even addessing the liabilty issues.

 

[Kevin_in_Mi]

I too have had a very similar situation. I bought our 5.5 acres a year and a half ago. The neighbor behind me was doing the same thing. Our property has an easment (ingress/egress only) and he was mowing about 10' down the 500' length of the drive. Also, he was mowing along the back of my property making his yard seem a lot bigger than it really was. He wasn't manicuring the parts that he was cutting, he was shaving the grass to about a half inch in length. Any small hump and it was bear dirt. I would mow to about 4" which is the height I like my lawn and here he would come with his mower shaving what I had just done. Needless to say It would make my yard look terrible. After numerous attempts of asking him to stop mowing my grass I had to take the approiate action to convince this guy that this was not his property to mow. He too said he was merely doing me a neighborly favor. I guess it seems to me that he was mowing long before I came along and did not want to give up the extra space he was creating for himself. Favor or no favor, I enjoy very much mowing my lawn as you do and It also gives me great pride making my place look good as well. The more grass, the more seat time.
Happy Mowing.
JD4300 mfwd r4's 60"mmm

 

[Mosey]

Let me see if I've got this right. If someone mows the grass on a piece of property that is not their own, then after 6 years they can make claim to it and become the owners of it? Is this in any state? There is a row of trees right along the property line between my neighbor and I and he usually mows it on my side as he mows around all of the trees (which he planted more than 5 years ago before I moved here). I mow it once it a while on my side, but never go on his side. I don't see a need to keep it as short as he does. Do I have to worry?

 

[8NTX]

Unless this guy is a real jerk, I wouldn't worry too much about it. If you are worried, and want to avoid the formality and confrontation implied by this kind of letter, why not just start mowing it yourself? Beat him to the punch - mow it a couple of days before you think he will. He should get the message after a few weeks. If he asks, just explain that you enjoy the seat time.

 

[Egon]

Send him a bill for lost seat time. Should solve all problems.

Egon

 

[Thomas]

Have a friendly chat w/him and ask him why he continues the practice,and kinda make it clear if he wishes to continue under no circumstance are you obliged for any damages to the equipment or him.

Wish I had a neighbor like that. /w3tcompact/icons/smile.gif

 

[gobbler]

A couple of years ago I came back from a business trip. Got back and found out that my neighbor had some guy over to till up some land for strawberries... you guessed it, about 1/3 of his new strawberry plot was on my property. He claimed (and I believe him) that the guy he hired to till for the bed just made a mistake. We had a few laughs over it and even today get to enjoy our share of the berries.

Jim

 

[DAP]

Easy fix ... if you don't want him mowing your grass, install sumpin on that part.

Suggestions:

1. Will a bowling alley fit?
2. Really loud noisy fountain.
3. Build some cages for those pet skunks you've been collecting.
4. Cover the entire area with crusher run.
5. Martha Stewart lawn and patio furniture. I think the price will be coming down.


You get the idea. "if the stuff is ours, we gotta mark it.'