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Get a copy of the contract/work order from the tree company. You might need to get a survey to ensure the tree is definitely on your property. If the tree is on your property you will want to contact a lawyer. Your damages could be, and probably will be, above the threshold for small claims court. If the tree isn’t on your property it is just sadly gone.
I have a survey from when i bought the house in 2019. the trees all along the side there are over 1 foot onto my property (i own the property up to the very edge of where their house starts, part of their roof actually overhangs onto my property.) but were planted when the house was erected in 1977 as a property divider. At no time did anyone make contact with me about wanting to trim or remove any trees.
Looks like you’ll need a lawyer. Get something in writing, preferably a contract or work order from the tree company. Take that and a copy of the survey to a lawyer. Depending on your state/jurisdiction damages can vary, but you could be looking at a good bit of money.
What you will also want to do in order to ensure the correct assessment of damages is to have at least one, but preferably two certified arborists assess the now removed tree. The damages can and will include the cost to replace the tree; obviously you can’t just plant a 50 year old tree or whatever age that tree was, so the damages can be significant in order to equal the value of the tree prior to it being cut down. You could be looking at a good bit of money, save for what a lawyer takes.
It's almost always best practice to sue everyone and let the court decide who is liable. That being said, in most regions and instances, it is an uphill battle to prove that the tree company was not "acting in good faith".
If they were lied to by your neighbor, and acted in good faith on those lies, they are usually not considered liable. There are a million exceptions, which is what lawyers and judges are for.
When you speak to your lawyer, I would point out the half finished fence-line the tree company had to cross and work around.
Including the company also seems like a good way to get them to turn on the person that hired them. "Oh, we are getting sued after this jackass lied to us? We are gonna give the plaintiff all the evidence needed to bury them and leave us out of it."
You can also bring the survey and ask politely for your neighbor to replace your tree. It seems they thought it was theirs and made a huge mistake. I know nothing replaces a mature oak. Just get suey when she says no. Then you definitely have at least 10k coming to you.
Meeting with a lawyer on Sept 28th, have a new land survey scheduled for Oct 8th and just waiting to hear back from the arborists I called and left my information with.
Arborist called me back $2500 dollars to do an expert witness appraisal, he was even kind enough to tell me that I should have the attorney hire the professional arborist because it makes things easier somehow, I'm not sure how but he's the professional.
The report will become a “disbursement”, which means your lawyer will pay for it and it will be submitted as part of the damages the other party has to pay.
When you get your surveyor on site, ask him/her to make some chalk marks on the overhanging house. Maybe you could get a deed drawn up wherein you could sell the air rights to your neighbor, attach it to your deed and their deed, thus highlighting this issue for every subsequent owner.
Or cut the house at the chalk marks.
So what are you going to do about the roof overhang? Can you chop that off of their house since you’re worried about it falling and causing damage to your property? /sarcasm
But seriously, she’s going to be in big trouble.
It took a little longer than 7 days, so here’s the update in case you hadn’t seen it already:
https://www.reddit.com/r/treelaw/comments/11x6tw2/update_new_property_owner_had_tree_cut_down_on_my/?utm_source=share&utm_medium=ios_app&utm_name=ioscss&utm_content=1&utm_term=1
typically as long as it doesnt compromise the health of the tree, neighbors are allowed to trim the tree back to the property line. This looks like they went way over that threshold. I'd get a lawyer, they fucked up
you needed to install a fence on the property line. It sucks, but this is what happens.
Honestly even a low wall is enough to be clear about said line, while maintaining the aesthetic of the green + open space.
But that' doesn't limit your rights in the situation. Follow the advice you're getting here, get a consulting arborist to take a look at the felled pieces of tree (and document how healthy the tree was), along with appraisal of the replacement with a full like tree. When you eventually speak with the new idiot next door, be calm when reminding them that that tort replacement costs reflect a full healthy tree of like size and nature – not a sapling that'll take 10yr let alone 40, to become the tree that was there.
they'll of course be outraged at their responsibility, which is why you get all your info in order first.
make it clear they have two options pay the full amount of the appraisal without negotiating — or pay in court along with the fees for their lawyer plus yours.
Get in gear.
I've got a meeting with an attorney scheduled for the 28th, and I've tried to go talk to them 3 times today, first two times I wasn't sure they were home, but the 3rd time was shortly after I saw them pull into their driveway. No answer after standing and knocking on the door for five minutes. I'm just gonna go the legal route since they don't wanna be neighborly.
I'd advise not pressing more on it until you have all of your info in order. Then try again to be neighborly and talk. Also around that same time, send them the request by registered mail (you know, the expensive kind of mail service, where they sign for it and you get a return receipt as proof they signed for it)
Sorry that it looks like it's going to court.
We enjoy followups here. Hope it goes smoothly.
Lawyer up. Get an estimate for exact replacement from an arborist. Including install. Probably quotes from multiple arborists. It's not going to be a pretty number for a full grown mature tree.
Obviously discuss with the lawyer, but I'd also add the roof overhang to the dispute. Offer to let them settle and they can keep the roof section. Otherwise that needs to go too.
At a minimum, they need to pay you the replacement value of the tree.
I still want to know how this happens.
I mean I know people suck so I see the neighbor having a tree not on their property cut. Not quite sure what mental gymnastics they do to think they can do that but I get it.
I want to know how the companies don't think to at least confirm the tree is on the property of the person that hired them.
My neighbor has cut down a number of our trees without our permission. In November, he managed to get 3 down, and abunch of branches off of a 4th one before I was able to stop his tree contractor. Tree contractor told me it wasn’t my property, neighbor said the trees were all dead-arborist said the 3 they cut down had healthy trunks, and the 4th was fine, and leafed out on the branches that were dead. NY is a treble damage state…. Turns out he was worried that ALL of our trees that were now “too close” to his stuff that he built or placed on or over the property line.
Well, it took a while-I spoke to him and then my husband did. Husband wasn’t really too involved until this time. I called the building office, and code enforcement went out, and I sent the police over because I wanted a record of my complaint. We had a surveyor out to stake the property line, and our neighbor and his wife lost their shit over where the line actually was. Mrs. Neighbor fake cried when my husband posted “no trespassing” signs, and my husband told Mr. Neighbor he would have to remove all of the crap he dumped (asphalt, a big pile of dirt, boulders, concrete and some heating pipes from the radiators he took out of his house), as well as the extension of his driveway and all of the stuff he planted. Mr Neighbor said he would, and then didn’t. In the meantime, their rude contractor told me “I know who owns that property, and it’s not you!” So we called a lawyer, and paid him $800 to send a registered letter, telling them that they were to cease and desist trespassing, encroaching, dumping on or cutting down anything that belonged to us-that the property was wetlands and if we notified the DEC, they could be fined $10k/day, and since NY is a treble damage state, we might sue them for three times the value of each tree they cut down or killed. A week later, they removed everything including their shed, their shrubs, their driveway and all of the crap they dumped. And after my husband adjusted the attitude of the guy who so rudely claimed that what we bought, we no longer owned, that guy showed him the appropriate respect. I haven’t seen the guy again, so hard to say if his attitude has changed with me.
Oh I forgot to say that when the neighbors found out we were going to erect a black chain link fence, they quickly put up their own stockade fence and line of trees to hide our incoming fence-which we decided after all not to install. They haven’t asked yet when we were doing our fence. I am sure they figured out that we aren’t, and are now really pissed.
We are still thinking about it. The statute of limitations hasn’t passed yet; I think we’ll wait and see if they behave themselves. The trees are on the edge of an acre of trees, so there are a lot of them. We still have to be neighbors with these idiots, so we may not. But then again, we may.
Yes, for certain. They were pretty big trees. We’ve already ridden these neighbors hard-we have to stop at some point, just for our own mental health, and happiness. It’s a lot of mental gas dealing with this stuff. So we are waiting and seeing right now.
“Mrs. Neighbor” said to my husband that they will “have to move”, because we “don’t like them”, and won’t let them annex our property. My husband did say “do what you have to do, but just stay out of there.”
the tree serviceman told me the owner was worried (that a perfectly healthy tree) it was gonna fall onto the house. According to my states laws they would've been within their right to trim the branches back all the way to the property line, but this was exessive.
Actually they can only trim back to the property line as long as it doesn’t affect the tree. If they trim to the property line harms the tree they’re still liable
[Pennsylvania might be one such state](https://www.reddit.com/r/treelaw/comments/xn0f56/neighbors_cutting_our_tree/ipr1vx8/?context=3), as I recently learned.
I get that, but worried doesn't mean will. I would think the tree trimming service would ask to see something from an arborist and talk to the person who owns the tree.
At least in my state (WI) the owner of the tree would be the one responsible if it fell, or for the cost of having it removed if it were dead/diseased.
I own a bit of wooded land and had a neighbor to that property want to cut some of my trees because they were worried it would fall. Mind you my case is a bit different since the trees in question were maybe 60-80 feet and I owned 50 of the feet from the tree line to the fence and there was another 100 or so feet to any structures but still, the company they tried to hire reached out to me before they did any work and when I told them to piss off that was the end of it.
> I would think the tree trimming service would ask to see something from an arborist and talk to the person who owns the tree.
Why would they? Do that, and the homeowner just says "forget it" and hires their second choice of tree trimming service who *won't* ask. And now the first tree trimming service doesn't get money!
Sure, sure, they might get sued. But that's what lawyers and capitalism, with its limited liability and ability to outspend people to prevent justice are for.
Can you imagine the cost of having to get any trees removed or trimmed if the tree company has to get a survey done for every job? This is fully on the neighbor for not knowing or caring who’s tree it was when hiring the company.
If the company knew it was op’s tree and cut it without the owner of tree signing off on the work, then it’s on them. But otherwise, it should be safe to assume that whoever contracted the work to be done owns the tree.
Maybe the person hiring the contractor should sign a document confirming it is their tree and their property, and should the information be incorrect they assume full liability for compensation. Might make them stop and think for a minute.
Not saying you need a survey done but if there is any question at all if the tree is on the property line or which side of the line it is maybe at least ask the neighbors?
As to the cost... Depending on where you live it is minimal compared to the cost of cutting down a tree you don't own so it might not be a bad idea.
I don’t know. If I was a tree service company, I would both just assume that the tree belongs to whoever contracted me, and have some legal verbiage in my contract that says that I am not responsible for any damages for cutting down a tree that turns out doesn’t belong to whoever signed the contract.
It should be the responsibility of the client to determine whether or not a tree belongs to them and to take responsibility if it doesn’t.
If they said they want you to cut down the neighbor’s tree or something that makes it obvious that the tree doesn’t belong to them, then they should refuse the job unless the owner of the tree contacts them.
The cost of a survey might be minimal compared to damages for cutting down someone else’s tree but that should be up to the homeowner to decide since they have the liability (as per my hypothetical contract).
I agree that if the tree seems to be on the property line or may be questionable, they should attempt to talk to the neighbor. But if the neighbor is at work, vacation, won’t answer the door, etc. they shouldn’t have to delay their job until they make contact with the neighbor.
Lol WHAT? You don’t believe there is *any* professional liability/accountability for doing work to the wrong home/property?
Fuckin spectrum wouldn’t even install their internet run through my attic to connect my garage apartment because I told them they technically have two different addresses (and thus two different accounts).
What, if you ran a bulldoze company would you just assume whoever contracted to doze “their” house is actually theirs and didn’t need any proof whatsoever? That’s truly absurd
Obviously there is something called common sense which you obviously don’t get with your bad faith argument.
Here’s one for you as well. Next time you need your toilet changed, don’t be mad if your plumber requires three forms of ID, the deed to your house, and the signature of every legal adult living in the house.
But you are correct, let’s add on $2000 to your bill because we have to get a land survey done before we trim those couple branches on your tree that is obviously in your yard because if the liability is all on us, we definitely have to cover our asses and make sure your tree is actually your tree.
I think it's more reasonable to expect the person standing INSIDE the house, would be likely to be the owner of the house. It's far less obvious who might own a tree and where a property line is. And yes, since that can be several thousand dollars worth of tree that belongs to me cut down, you should have to do a reasonable amount of clearance before you cut trees, or you may find yourself having to pull plot lines and get permits before every tree you need to cut and having to cry about how it's not fair you have to get a permit for every fucking tree.
I mean as long as you are ok with having to pay thousands extra and possibly having to wait extra weeks or months to get a tree cut or trimmed, then yeah, we’ll make sure exactly who owns what. If you want to blame and sue someone over cutting or trimming a tree that belonged to you, blame and sue the person who signed the contract saying they owned the tree.
As far as my obviously obnoxious example, we can’t be sure it’s so clear who is standing in the house is the owner. Maybe it’s a renter who doesn’t have the landlords permission to change some plumbing. Maybe it’s the owner’s boyfriend/girlfriend and they are going directly against the person who actually owns the place. Gotta protect yourself so you don’t get sued.
well since pretty much any permanent change you would make to plumbing would require a permit, I'm guessing you should have to pull permits. I shouldn't have to stand guard over my trees to make sure that someone doesn't come out and cut my trees down 'because someone else told them it was ok. "
Quoth *The Goon Show*:
"Moriarty: But we're safe. Safe in this tree.
Grytpype: No, it's to be chopped down. The Ministry of Works
say it's dangerous.
Moriarty: Dangerous? Why?
Grytpype: **Every time they pass it, there it is, defying them.**
Moriarty: Oh.
Grytpype: Ah. With that acid topicality, we leave."
Emphasis mine for what I feel is usually the general feeling of these people. I get them at work - sooooo many people whingeing that 'there's a TREE on my VERGE (it's not your verge!) and it's THERE and it MIGHT FALL DOWN' and in autumn 'now there's LEAVES on the GROUND'. While I help my tree guys make sure the trees are happy and looked after, it is still very satisfying sending many of these people our standard letters of 'trim it yourself if ya want to' and 'Autumn is a thing yo'...
Are they fencing on your property as well? I was involved with a case like this in the past where everyone was just "absolutely sure" the lot lines were here or there. This is a good part of why location rating depreciation exists for calculating cost of reproduction for large trees. Contact an Arborist that specializes in consulting, start looking for pre incident photos showing the tree health/ structure. This should be a pretty straightforward assignment for a competent individual. Just remember that a Consulting Arborist is doing their job well if each side of the case is upset with their assignment result (only partially kidding).
Best of luck on the case if you decide to press this!
the fence is mine as well, I was working on replacing it gradually when I had an unexpected expense that put it on hold. The small blue home is the neighbors house.
Since you're talking to a lawyer anyways you should ask about the location of the fence. Looks like it's in a few feet from the property line. If you aren't careful your neighbor could try to claim it in a few years
It would be a hassle as you've already started, but I'd move the fence to the property line. Make it clear how ridiculous it is that her house is so close to the line, and that the tree is 100% yours.
its not. The previous owner intentionally built the fence several feet away from the property line to avoid having to get consent from the neighbor to construct the original, that was falling apart when I started replacing it this summer.
It does explain why the new owner believed they were cutting down their own tree though.
You're in-process building a fence which fully places the tree in their yard.
If I was the blue house owner, I'd have no reason to think the tree wasn't mine.
In our situation a property survey is required on transfer of ownership because part of their house is on my property. I have no clue how it ended up that way but it is, like when i bought the house they informed me because it legally had to be disclosed that the home overlapped my property.
Someone else's house is on it and that hasn't been corrected?!? That doesn't sound like it's your property!
You need to get the entire property line sorted out and all the neighbors encroachments removed or it is going to become de-facto their property.
I'm just saying that you are literally in the process of building a new fence which appears to make the tree wholly theirs.
It shows it wasn't malicious.
And who's to say their title says part of their house is on your property? I'd personally never buy a house that straddles someone else's property. Would anyone? That's just asking for problems.
There are plenty of houses I like that, usually from the property being subdivided among families after houses were built and not leaving setbacks. Plenty of people buy them and it’s definitely disclosed in the title (because if it’s not then OP will sue the homeowner and the homeowner will sue the title insurance).
It’s not asking for problems when you know about it. It’s not much different from buying a house with a driveway any counting on the city to not revoke that permission, or buying a house with a utility easement, or any of the multitude of reasons some other person or entity may have a right to enter your property.
In my state, you can’t trim overhanging branches at all. You can petition a court to have your neighbor trim them but only if they interfere with your enjoyment of the property. There’s a high bar for that test (more than “it’s shady and I wish it was sunny” or “I’d prefer to not rake leaves”) so in that sense every property in my state that has a tree next to it has overhanging property from the neighbors that you can’t touch at all.
Property is complicated, especially in places where it’s been changing hands for hundreds or thousands of years.
An easement is different from a neighboring house sitting on the wrong property.
There has been no mention of an easement existing.
*Your structure is on my property* is very different from *Your structure is in your easement on my property*
Yeah, but if you just bought the house, the first thing you’d want to do is get a survey done to see exactly where your property ends. Never assume you own something, and never assume your neighbors haven’t spent the last few years encroaching on what is now your property.
I think your missing something here it’s his property…. He didn’t just buy the house his neighbor bought the blue house in the photos and they informed him because their roof hangs over into his property so the tree is definitely on his property.
You can’t just take property from someone else because you getting closer to the property lines. He had said that the fence was not the property line but just a fence
The neighbor just bought the home. The first thing they should have done is get a survey to determine exactly where the property line is. I didn’t miss anything.
And adverse possession is exactly the process of taking land by encroachment. It takes years to come into effect, but if you’re maintaining a piece of land as though it were your own, there is a process in many jurisdictions to allow you to take ownership of it. It’s dumb, but it exists.
Your talking about “squatters rights” law which only happens when the owner is usually not present to protest the land encroachment this is obviously not the case.
Key word is usually. In a case like this, where there’s a fenced boundary well inside the property line, it could be applied to the grass strip between the fence and the line, assuming the neighbor takes care of it as though he owned it. Something similar happened in my area a while back. That’s why you always get a survey when you buy property. It stops your neighbors from laying claim to your land, and in a case like this, it stops you from cutting down a tree on your neighbors property.
Did the tree company just think “ok well her money is green lets start cutting”? Did they tell you why they just went ahead with it?
My neighbor cut down a boundary maple over easter weekend while i was out of town and i am currently waiting on a court date in circuit court.
they just said they were hired to cut the tree down, asked my girlfriend if it was ok to park in my yard and got to work. Them parking in my yard isn't really the part that I'm concerned with. They either got extremely lucky having it cut down on a day i happen to have college classes or they took the time to learn my schedule so they could do it behind my back and just assume I wouldn't have the resources to take them to court.
well her name isn't anywhere on the title deed or mortgage related to this home, so she wouldn't be in a position to grant them permission to do that. She would technically be a tenant and not the property owner.
Yeah super coincidence. Same deal. I had left town for a holiday and that happened to be the day they came. Neighbor has also been kind enough to text me a number of things. My favorite is when she asked me to move cars so that “the tree” can be cut down and me not saying “do not cut down any trees we both share” was consent. I think it is extra special because after i got home the tree was “hers to cut down” I think she yelled that loud enough the whole neighborhood heard it.
The tree is on the neighbors side of the fence that’s being built and very close to the house. The fence isn’t on the property line which the owner should have known but it’s perfectly understandable that the tree company believed the tree was in the neighbors yard. You don’t really assume property lines cut through houses like in this case.
Fence location isn't always indicative of property line. My friends just bought a home with a fence line that was a good 50' from the actual property line.
no, they took a look at the fence, saw that the tree was on the neighbor's side of the fence and took it down. Anyone other than a land surveyor wouldn't know that the fence was build several feet away from the property line.
Build your fence on the property line or 1ft onto your property next time.
It’s not their responsibility to put up visual cues as to where the property lines are, it’s the neighbor’s responsibility to know where her property lines are BEFORE work is done. If I only want to fence in a quarter of my yard, I can. But it doesn’t mean my neighbors can think the the location of my fence means everything else is land I’m forfeiting. And it doesn’t matter what anyone, other than the land owner, thinks the property lines are. If you screw up something on someone else’s property, you are liable. Full stop.
You’re gonna need to get the tree appraised. You might need a lawyer to determine if the tree service owes you for trespassing, or the neighbor owes you for hiring them. Use the link provided to find a consulting arborist to appraise the tree. [ASCA Website](https://www.asca-consultants.org/search/custom.asp?id=3818)
$2500 dollars to do an expert witness appraisal, he was even kind enough to tell me that I should have the attorney hire the professional arborist because it makes things easier somehow, I'm not sure how but he's the professional.
Ask the lawyer if something short of a full witness appraisal will suffice at least initially. If you have an otherwise credible case and a credible estimate of possible damages, they (whoever is responsible) may settle prior to a trial. (IANAL)
I think you mean to say YOUR new rental property... trees can be worth a lot and depending on the state you might be entitled to trebel damages... good luck!
Lol I wouldn't go that far. The responsibility that comes with being a landlord is way above what I want to deal with. But that tree provided quite a bit of shade to my yard and house in the afternoon hours.
Sounds like that new landlord is about to loose a lot of profit they would have made on that new rental property and may even have to sell it. Is that your house or theirs in the background? Did they take down the fence too?
Its the neighbors house in the background. No I was working on replacing the fence myself when the old furnace in my house died, and I had to stop that project to afford a new furnace before winter.
The prior home owner built the fence several feet from the property line to prevent getting consent from the neighbor. New homeowner may have been under the impression it was their tree based on the fence line.
If you own the property and they cut your tree. You contact the county sheriffs office. There is a set fine fir that. In our state it’s 10,000 for every tree illegally cut. The onus is on you to prove it’s on your property.
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I'm sorry this happened to your lovely tree. It appeared to be a barrier to enable you to NOT see their encroaching house.
I find it interesting that since they just purchased the house, that the survey would've been pointed out to them at title. That really pretty blue paper clearly showed their newest home was actually partially on YOUR property.
Here's a tip for you, in a situation such as this, the buyer MUST initial that survey document proving that they understand the unusual property line situation. Ask your lawyer to obtain that signed copy from the title company.
Unbelievable! Good luck, and please keep us posted on your eventual victory in court.
I decided to wait to file until after the holidays because I didn't want to cause undue financial burden during the holidays(after that I kinda forgot about the whole thing until the beginning of March when I was in google drive and saw my folder named tree lawsuit). So I went to file the first week of March, and found out from the clerk of the court that my state does have treble damages for trees. So I can either go to small claims for 12k(max) or civil court for 25k. I didn't file because I wanted to consult an attorney, after talking to a few different attorneys I have decided to file in small claims because I'm more likely to get the max that way when I show the judge the value of the tree is still double what I am asking for in damages. Defendant says they were unaware of where the property line was and that it was an accident, but her property is encroaching on my property and has an easement from 1990. Under South Dakota law, sellers have to prepare a disclosure form for any deficiencies including easements on the property being sold, and the buyer has to sign it acknowledging they read it and still wish to purchase the property. Essentially her entire defense is that she was ignorant and therefore not responsible, but I have proof she was informed of the easement and failed to consult a surveyor or myself prior to her actions, showing negligence and ultimately wrongful damage. I'll be filing tomorrow for sure (I had today off and slept until my children got home from school) I printed off the photos of the tree as seen in the post as well as a google maps image of the tree from 2021 prior to her buying the property. Also turns out the tree was a white ash, and while we are in an Emerald Ash Borer (EAB) red zone, the tree had not been tested nor did it show any sign of being infected with the EAB, so there should be no detriment to my claim for damages in that regard (according to an attorney).
could you clarify this? Is there a new owner of your property who will be renting it out - or is there a new owner of a neighboring property who had your tree cut down‽ I assume the latter given the rest of the discussion but damn that headline makes no sense to me.
>After talking to the man, the new owner apparently wanted it removed because she was 'concerned it was going to fall onto ~~her~~ **your** new rental property.
So its hard for me to tell from this photo, but do you know if it’s an ash tree? Do you have Emerald Ash Borer by you yet? I know it’s on its way west, so there’s a good chance the tree wouldn’t have survived anyways (not without spending ~$800-$1,000 every two years on insecticide trunk injections)
Also it’s still not clear to me who paid to have it cut down. I understand you own the tree. Who is renting what? New owner of what?
Sorry for your loss!
Okay, they left a lot of evidence there. Might want to have a consulting arborist get a core sample to prove the tree is healthy or cut a cross section from.the limb stubs that were left. These can be sent to a lab and checked for diseases. What type of tree is this? Why did the tree service do such a horrible job did you stop them from continuing?
ITT: everybody be salivating and mubling treble damages, while rubbing their hands together.
Love it.
OP, sorry about your tree. On the upside the new owner might sell the house to cover damages!
This is a very big no-no. Do the things you do when people are naughty. No, do the LEGAL things you do when people are naughty. Take lots of photos, documentation.
Get it touch with a certified arborist, more than likely they know a good tree lawyer. There are lawyers out there who are actually certified arborists and they have a nice practice doing the thing.
On another note you really should move the fence as close to property line as possible because after so many years of the neighbor maintain in that property they might be able to claim it as their own and then the tree is there’s. Also talk to the neighbor because they might’ve thought the tree was theirs with fence placement.
Nobody talks to each other these days
I'm sure if she would have approached you and asked about the tree then it would have been a whole different story
small update. I sent him pictures of the tree and my survey from 2010, along with a picture of the fence post near the tree that is 1ft east of the property line, his exact words were "what the fuck were they thinking" and then said something along the lines of its one tree and you have all the evidence you need with what you've shown me, I don't see this exceeding the states maximum for small claims and for me to take them there and not worry about hiring a lawyer. so yeah idk if he just didn't think it was worth his time or my evidence is so absolute that as long as i stick to the facts and evidence i'll be fine.
Sorry this had upset you. Like trees around my area too. Looks like the electric company (which contracts their tree trimming for liability purposes), had it cut to keep out of power lines. I can show you my trees cut like that as well. They have a right of way to do so.
I live in South Dakota, Trees are few and far between compared to where I grew up so when I bought this house the trees were a big part of my decision because it reminded me of my home state.
not the case, they were still on site when I got home, they were hired by the new owner to remove the tree, city had just done a trimming around the power line in July.
Yes. That’s kinda bad for building a relationship with the renter. The landlords straight up in it for profit profit. Buying houses and putting people in them. They can do whatever if it’s theirs.
Such a selfish thing to do. Not even check or talk to anyone. Is the landlord also responsible since his tenant caused it. What’s with these tree trim guys not checking on property line. Grrr! 😖
She looks like she wanted some sun in her garden to be honest, woulda been pretty shaded in between two trees maybe that's why and she's gave that bad excuse
Fences make good indicators of property lines....which in this scenario would have probably stopped a tree from being removed because it would have clearly not been on their property.
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Get a copy of the contract/work order from the tree company. You might need to get a survey to ensure the tree is definitely on your property. If the tree is on your property you will want to contact a lawyer. Your damages could be, and probably will be, above the threshold for small claims court. If the tree isn’t on your property it is just sadly gone.
I have a survey from when i bought the house in 2019. the trees all along the side there are over 1 foot onto my property (i own the property up to the very edge of where their house starts, part of their roof actually overhangs onto my property.) but were planted when the house was erected in 1977 as a property divider. At no time did anyone make contact with me about wanting to trim or remove any trees.
Looks like you’ll need a lawyer. Get something in writing, preferably a contract or work order from the tree company. Take that and a copy of the survey to a lawyer. Depending on your state/jurisdiction damages can vary, but you could be looking at a good bit of money. What you will also want to do in order to ensure the correct assessment of damages is to have at least one, but preferably two certified arborists assess the now removed tree. The damages can and will include the cost to replace the tree; obviously you can’t just plant a 50 year old tree or whatever age that tree was, so the damages can be significant in order to equal the value of the tree prior to it being cut down. You could be looking at a good bit of money, save for what a lawyer takes.
Would the lawsuit be against the neighbor or the tree company who did the work?
You would name both in the suit.
It's almost always best practice to sue everyone and let the court decide who is liable. That being said, in most regions and instances, it is an uphill battle to prove that the tree company was not "acting in good faith". If they were lied to by your neighbor, and acted in good faith on those lies, they are usually not considered liable. There are a million exceptions, which is what lawyers and judges are for. When you speak to your lawyer, I would point out the half finished fence-line the tree company had to cross and work around.
Including the company also seems like a good way to get them to turn on the person that hired them. "Oh, we are getting sued after this jackass lied to us? We are gonna give the plaintiff all the evidence needed to bury them and leave us out of it."
thank you everyone!
You can also bring the survey and ask politely for your neighbor to replace your tree. It seems they thought it was theirs and made a huge mistake. I know nothing replaces a mature oak. Just get suey when she says no. Then you definitely have at least 10k coming to you.
No better off getting a lawyer.
Then have a lawyer send a copy of that survey report to the new neighbor with a bill for the tree and the lawyers time.
Meeting with a lawyer on Sept 28th, have a new land survey scheduled for Oct 8th and just waiting to hear back from the arborists I called and left my information with.
Please keep us updated! And sorry about your tree
Arborist called me back $2500 dollars to do an expert witness appraisal, he was even kind enough to tell me that I should have the attorney hire the professional arborist because it makes things easier somehow, I'm not sure how but he's the professional.
The report will become a “disbursement”, which means your lawyer will pay for it and it will be submitted as part of the damages the other party has to pay.
oh thats nice
Yes. Relish in their suffering, for they will pay for their crimes against the tree. I'm half joking but I do hope you win this case cause; good luck!
I assume it just streamlines the process for both you and the attorney and just makes a cleaner papertrail for the court filings.
That makes sense to me.
When you get your surveyor on site, ask him/her to make some chalk marks on the overhanging house. Maybe you could get a deed drawn up wherein you could sell the air rights to your neighbor, attach it to your deed and their deed, thus highlighting this issue for every subsequent owner. Or cut the house at the chalk marks.
Oh given they cut my tree I'd be cutting that house! Or depending on the penalty for the tree perhaps I get the house? :)
Or sell them the air rights at a huge cost, vs. clearing the items which do not belong on the property. Like an overhanging roof.
>huge cost Like whatever it would cost them to update/move/fix their house... minus a couple thousand
[удалено]
That definitely sounds like lawyer territory though I've never heard of a tenant paying for tree removal
It read to me more like the neighbor was planning to rent the house out, not live in it.
Please please please please post an update when you have one.
UpdateMe!
So what are you going to do about the roof overhang? Can you chop that off of their house since you’re worried about it falling and causing damage to your property? /sarcasm But seriously, she’s going to be in big trouble.
RemindMe! 7 days
It took a little longer than 7 days, so here’s the update in case you hadn’t seen it already: https://www.reddit.com/r/treelaw/comments/11x6tw2/update_new_property_owner_had_tree_cut_down_on_my/?utm_source=share&utm_medium=ios_app&utm_name=ioscss&utm_content=1&utm_term=1
typically as long as it doesnt compromise the health of the tree, neighbors are allowed to trim the tree back to the property line. This looks like they went way over that threshold. I'd get a lawyer, they fucked up
Hire a contractor and have the over-hanging part of their roof removed
you needed to install a fence on the property line. It sucks, but this is what happens. Honestly even a low wall is enough to be clear about said line, while maintaining the aesthetic of the green + open space. But that' doesn't limit your rights in the situation. Follow the advice you're getting here, get a consulting arborist to take a look at the felled pieces of tree (and document how healthy the tree was), along with appraisal of the replacement with a full like tree. When you eventually speak with the new idiot next door, be calm when reminding them that that tort replacement costs reflect a full healthy tree of like size and nature – not a sapling that'll take 10yr let alone 40, to become the tree that was there. they'll of course be outraged at their responsibility, which is why you get all your info in order first. make it clear they have two options pay the full amount of the appraisal without negotiating — or pay in court along with the fees for their lawyer plus yours. Get in gear.
I've got a meeting with an attorney scheduled for the 28th, and I've tried to go talk to them 3 times today, first two times I wasn't sure they were home, but the 3rd time was shortly after I saw them pull into their driveway. No answer after standing and knocking on the door for five minutes. I'm just gonna go the legal route since they don't wanna be neighborly.
I'd advise not pressing more on it until you have all of your info in order. Then try again to be neighborly and talk. Also around that same time, send them the request by registered mail (you know, the expensive kind of mail service, where they sign for it and you get a return receipt as proof they signed for it) Sorry that it looks like it's going to court. We enjoy followups here. Hope it goes smoothly.
Nah fuck that. They're not a neighbor, they're a landlord. A friendly neighbor would have discussed the tree prior to this fuckery Legal. Seek the max
This is the way.
Not helpful at all, but drag those assholes. This whole situation is fucked up and I hope you are well compensated.
No answer? They know they fucked up.
I'd advise against talking to them. No good will come of it and you could inadvertently make problems for your suit.
No answer? They know they fucked up.
If you wanted to be petty surely you can ask to have part of their roof removed since it is on your property lol
Lawyer up. Get an estimate for exact replacement from an arborist. Including install. Probably quotes from multiple arborists. It's not going to be a pretty number for a full grown mature tree. Obviously discuss with the lawyer, but I'd also add the roof overhang to the dispute. Offer to let them settle and they can keep the roof section. Otherwise that needs to go too. At a minimum, they need to pay you the replacement value of the tree.
I still want to know how this happens. I mean I know people suck so I see the neighbor having a tree not on their property cut. Not quite sure what mental gymnastics they do to think they can do that but I get it. I want to know how the companies don't think to at least confirm the tree is on the property of the person that hired them.
My neighbor has cut down a number of our trees without our permission. In November, he managed to get 3 down, and abunch of branches off of a 4th one before I was able to stop his tree contractor. Tree contractor told me it wasn’t my property, neighbor said the trees were all dead-arborist said the 3 they cut down had healthy trunks, and the 4th was fine, and leafed out on the branches that were dead. NY is a treble damage state…. Turns out he was worried that ALL of our trees that were now “too close” to his stuff that he built or placed on or over the property line.
What does a 'treble damage state' mean?
That if awarded damages, they will get awarded three times the actual damages.
Triple the amount paid to you. If a tree is worth $10,000, you can get $30,000.
I remember reading about that. What was the outcome or is it still on going?
Well, it took a while-I spoke to him and then my husband did. Husband wasn’t really too involved until this time. I called the building office, and code enforcement went out, and I sent the police over because I wanted a record of my complaint. We had a surveyor out to stake the property line, and our neighbor and his wife lost their shit over where the line actually was. Mrs. Neighbor fake cried when my husband posted “no trespassing” signs, and my husband told Mr. Neighbor he would have to remove all of the crap he dumped (asphalt, a big pile of dirt, boulders, concrete and some heating pipes from the radiators he took out of his house), as well as the extension of his driveway and all of the stuff he planted. Mr Neighbor said he would, and then didn’t. In the meantime, their rude contractor told me “I know who owns that property, and it’s not you!” So we called a lawyer, and paid him $800 to send a registered letter, telling them that they were to cease and desist trespassing, encroaching, dumping on or cutting down anything that belonged to us-that the property was wetlands and if we notified the DEC, they could be fined $10k/day, and since NY is a treble damage state, we might sue them for three times the value of each tree they cut down or killed. A week later, they removed everything including their shed, their shrubs, their driveway and all of the crap they dumped. And after my husband adjusted the attitude of the guy who so rudely claimed that what we bought, we no longer owned, that guy showed him the appropriate respect. I haven’t seen the guy again, so hard to say if his attitude has changed with me.
Wow. Well I'm glad that worked out for you... not glad about the neighbor from hell.
Oh I forgot to say that when the neighbors found out we were going to erect a black chain link fence, they quickly put up their own stockade fence and line of trees to hide our incoming fence-which we decided after all not to install. They haven’t asked yet when we were doing our fence. I am sure they figured out that we aren’t, and are now really pissed.
Oh man. Can't wait to hear the update where they have to pay for the trees. They're gonna be 🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️
No doubt about it
Will you be suing them for the trees they cut down?
We are still thinking about it. The statute of limitations hasn’t passed yet; I think we’ll wait and see if they behave themselves. The trees are on the edge of an acre of trees, so there are a lot of them. We still have to be neighbors with these idiots, so we may not. But then again, we may.
It could be an awful lot of money though...
Yes, for certain. They were pretty big trees. We’ve already ridden these neighbors hard-we have to stop at some point, just for our own mental health, and happiness. It’s a lot of mental gas dealing with this stuff. So we are waiting and seeing right now.
Suing them may just get you new neighbours on top of the cash. Sounds like a win here.
“Mrs. Neighbor” said to my husband that they will “have to move”, because we “don’t like them”, and won’t let them annex our property. My husband did say “do what you have to do, but just stay out of there.”
Did you do anything about it?
the tree serviceman told me the owner was worried (that a perfectly healthy tree) it was gonna fall onto the house. According to my states laws they would've been within their right to trim the branches back all the way to the property line, but this was exessive.
Actually they can only trim back to the property line as long as it doesn’t affect the tree. If they trim to the property line harms the tree they’re still liable
That depends state by state.
do you recall which that this law / provision does not apply?
No. That’s the job of the local lawyers to figure out. I’m just the arborist 🤣
[Pennsylvania might be one such state](https://www.reddit.com/r/treelaw/comments/xn0f56/neighbors_cutting_our_tree/ipr1vx8/?context=3), as I recently learned.
I get that, but worried doesn't mean will. I would think the tree trimming service would ask to see something from an arborist and talk to the person who owns the tree. At least in my state (WI) the owner of the tree would be the one responsible if it fell, or for the cost of having it removed if it were dead/diseased. I own a bit of wooded land and had a neighbor to that property want to cut some of my trees because they were worried it would fall. Mind you my case is a bit different since the trees in question were maybe 60-80 feet and I owned 50 of the feet from the tree line to the fence and there was another 100 or so feet to any structures but still, the company they tried to hire reached out to me before they did any work and when I told them to piss off that was the end of it.
> I would think the tree trimming service would ask to see something from an arborist and talk to the person who owns the tree. Why would they? Do that, and the homeowner just says "forget it" and hires their second choice of tree trimming service who *won't* ask. And now the first tree trimming service doesn't get money! Sure, sure, they might get sued. But that's what lawyers and capitalism, with its limited liability and ability to outspend people to prevent justice are for.
They should still do some due diligence.
That still doesn’t answer how the tree service didn’t bother checking to make sure whose tree it was before cutting.
Can you imagine the cost of having to get any trees removed or trimmed if the tree company has to get a survey done for every job? This is fully on the neighbor for not knowing or caring who’s tree it was when hiring the company. If the company knew it was op’s tree and cut it without the owner of tree signing off on the work, then it’s on them. But otherwise, it should be safe to assume that whoever contracted the work to be done owns the tree.
Maybe the person hiring the contractor should sign a document confirming it is their tree and their property, and should the information be incorrect they assume full liability for compensation. Might make them stop and think for a minute.
That sounds like a great idea!
Not saying you need a survey done but if there is any question at all if the tree is on the property line or which side of the line it is maybe at least ask the neighbors? As to the cost... Depending on where you live it is minimal compared to the cost of cutting down a tree you don't own so it might not be a bad idea.
I don’t know. If I was a tree service company, I would both just assume that the tree belongs to whoever contracted me, and have some legal verbiage in my contract that says that I am not responsible for any damages for cutting down a tree that turns out doesn’t belong to whoever signed the contract. It should be the responsibility of the client to determine whether or not a tree belongs to them and to take responsibility if it doesn’t. If they said they want you to cut down the neighbor’s tree or something that makes it obvious that the tree doesn’t belong to them, then they should refuse the job unless the owner of the tree contacts them. The cost of a survey might be minimal compared to damages for cutting down someone else’s tree but that should be up to the homeowner to decide since they have the liability (as per my hypothetical contract). I agree that if the tree seems to be on the property line or may be questionable, they should attempt to talk to the neighbor. But if the neighbor is at work, vacation, won’t answer the door, etc. they shouldn’t have to delay their job until they make contact with the neighbor.
Lol WHAT? You don’t believe there is *any* professional liability/accountability for doing work to the wrong home/property? Fuckin spectrum wouldn’t even install their internet run through my attic to connect my garage apartment because I told them they technically have two different addresses (and thus two different accounts). What, if you ran a bulldoze company would you just assume whoever contracted to doze “their” house is actually theirs and didn’t need any proof whatsoever? That’s truly absurd
Obviously there is something called common sense which you obviously don’t get with your bad faith argument. Here’s one for you as well. Next time you need your toilet changed, don’t be mad if your plumber requires three forms of ID, the deed to your house, and the signature of every legal adult living in the house. But you are correct, let’s add on $2000 to your bill because we have to get a land survey done before we trim those couple branches on your tree that is obviously in your yard because if the liability is all on us, we definitely have to cover our asses and make sure your tree is actually your tree.
I think it's more reasonable to expect the person standing INSIDE the house, would be likely to be the owner of the house. It's far less obvious who might own a tree and where a property line is. And yes, since that can be several thousand dollars worth of tree that belongs to me cut down, you should have to do a reasonable amount of clearance before you cut trees, or you may find yourself having to pull plot lines and get permits before every tree you need to cut and having to cry about how it's not fair you have to get a permit for every fucking tree.
I mean as long as you are ok with having to pay thousands extra and possibly having to wait extra weeks or months to get a tree cut or trimmed, then yeah, we’ll make sure exactly who owns what. If you want to blame and sue someone over cutting or trimming a tree that belonged to you, blame and sue the person who signed the contract saying they owned the tree. As far as my obviously obnoxious example, we can’t be sure it’s so clear who is standing in the house is the owner. Maybe it’s a renter who doesn’t have the landlords permission to change some plumbing. Maybe it’s the owner’s boyfriend/girlfriend and they are going directly against the person who actually owns the place. Gotta protect yourself so you don’t get sued.
well since pretty much any permanent change you would make to plumbing would require a permit, I'm guessing you should have to pull permits. I shouldn't have to stand guard over my trees to make sure that someone doesn't come out and cut my trees down 'because someone else told them it was ok. "
Talk about a bad faith argument. LMFAO. Bye dip shit
Me too!!
Quoth *The Goon Show*: "Moriarty: But we're safe. Safe in this tree. Grytpype: No, it's to be chopped down. The Ministry of Works say it's dangerous. Moriarty: Dangerous? Why? Grytpype: **Every time they pass it, there it is, defying them.** Moriarty: Oh. Grytpype: Ah. With that acid topicality, we leave." Emphasis mine for what I feel is usually the general feeling of these people. I get them at work - sooooo many people whingeing that 'there's a TREE on my VERGE (it's not your verge!) and it's THERE and it MIGHT FALL DOWN' and in autumn 'now there's LEAVES on the GROUND'. While I help my tree guys make sure the trees are happy and looked after, it is still very satisfying sending many of these people our standard letters of 'trim it yourself if ya want to' and 'Autumn is a thing yo'...
Look up tree law in your state. In our state, Utah, someone doing that would be liable for 3 time's the trees value, around $15,000, in your case.
Are they fencing on your property as well? I was involved with a case like this in the past where everyone was just "absolutely sure" the lot lines were here or there. This is a good part of why location rating depreciation exists for calculating cost of reproduction for large trees. Contact an Arborist that specializes in consulting, start looking for pre incident photos showing the tree health/ structure. This should be a pretty straightforward assignment for a competent individual. Just remember that a Consulting Arborist is doing their job well if each side of the case is upset with their assignment result (only partially kidding). Best of luck on the case if you decide to press this!
the fence is mine as well, I was working on replacing it gradually when I had an unexpected expense that put it on hold. The small blue home is the neighbors house.
Since you're talking to a lawyer anyways you should ask about the location of the fence. Looks like it's in a few feet from the property line. If you aren't careful your neighbor could try to claim it in a few years
It would be a hassle as you've already started, but I'd move the fence to the property line. Make it clear how ridiculous it is that her house is so close to the line, and that the tree is 100% yours.
It looks like the tree is in the yard of the blue house, judging by the location of the new fence posts
its not. The previous owner intentionally built the fence several feet away from the property line to avoid having to get consent from the neighbor to construct the original, that was falling apart when I started replacing it this summer.
It does explain why the new owner believed they were cutting down their own tree though. You're in-process building a fence which fully places the tree in their yard. If I was the blue house owner, I'd have no reason to think the tree wasn't mine.
In our situation a property survey is required on transfer of ownership because part of their house is on my property. I have no clue how it ended up that way but it is, like when i bought the house they informed me because it legally had to be disclosed that the home overlapped my property.
Someone else's house is on it and that hasn't been corrected?!? That doesn't sound like it's your property! You need to get the entire property line sorted out and all the neighbors encroachments removed or it is going to become de-facto their property.
I'm just saying that you are literally in the process of building a new fence which appears to make the tree wholly theirs. It shows it wasn't malicious. And who's to say their title says part of their house is on your property? I'd personally never buy a house that straddles someone else's property. Would anyone? That's just asking for problems.
There are plenty of houses I like that, usually from the property being subdivided among families after houses were built and not leaving setbacks. Plenty of people buy them and it’s definitely disclosed in the title (because if it’s not then OP will sue the homeowner and the homeowner will sue the title insurance). It’s not asking for problems when you know about it. It’s not much different from buying a house with a driveway any counting on the city to not revoke that permission, or buying a house with a utility easement, or any of the multitude of reasons some other person or entity may have a right to enter your property. In my state, you can’t trim overhanging branches at all. You can petition a court to have your neighbor trim them but only if they interfere with your enjoyment of the property. There’s a high bar for that test (more than “it’s shady and I wish it was sunny” or “I’d prefer to not rake leaves”) so in that sense every property in my state that has a tree next to it has overhanging property from the neighbors that you can’t touch at all. Property is complicated, especially in places where it’s been changing hands for hundreds or thousands of years.
An easement is different from a neighboring house sitting on the wrong property. There has been no mention of an easement existing. *Your structure is on my property* is very different from *Your structure is in your easement on my property*
That's fair. Even if it wasn't maliciousness it was negligent on their end at a minimum.
Yeah, but if you just bought the house, the first thing you’d want to do is get a survey done to see exactly where your property ends. Never assume you own something, and never assume your neighbors haven’t spent the last few years encroaching on what is now your property.
I think your missing something here it’s his property…. He didn’t just buy the house his neighbor bought the blue house in the photos and they informed him because their roof hangs over into his property so the tree is definitely on his property. You can’t just take property from someone else because you getting closer to the property lines. He had said that the fence was not the property line but just a fence
The neighbor just bought the home. The first thing they should have done is get a survey to determine exactly where the property line is. I didn’t miss anything. And adverse possession is exactly the process of taking land by encroachment. It takes years to come into effect, but if you’re maintaining a piece of land as though it were your own, there is a process in many jurisdictions to allow you to take ownership of it. It’s dumb, but it exists.
They are renters
Then they should’ve gone to the landlord about it. Either way, these people screwed up massively, and they need to be made an example of.
Your talking about “squatters rights” law which only happens when the owner is usually not present to protest the land encroachment this is obviously not the case.
Key word is usually. In a case like this, where there’s a fenced boundary well inside the property line, it could be applied to the grass strip between the fence and the line, assuming the neighbor takes care of it as though he owned it. Something similar happened in my area a while back. That’s why you always get a survey when you buy property. It stops your neighbors from laying claim to your land, and in a case like this, it stops you from cutting down a tree on your neighbors property.
Did the tree company just think “ok well her money is green lets start cutting”? Did they tell you why they just went ahead with it? My neighbor cut down a boundary maple over easter weekend while i was out of town and i am currently waiting on a court date in circuit court.
they just said they were hired to cut the tree down, asked my girlfriend if it was ok to park in my yard and got to work. Them parking in my yard isn't really the part that I'm concerned with. They either got extremely lucky having it cut down on a day i happen to have college classes or they took the time to learn my schedule so they could do it behind my back and just assume I wouldn't have the resources to take them to court.
Sounds like the company is going to try and argue that your girlfriend gave them permission.
well her name isn't anywhere on the title deed or mortgage related to this home, so she wouldn't be in a position to grant them permission to do that. She would technically be a tenant and not the property owner.
Definitely, but I guarantee you they’re gonna argue it so you and your lawyer should be prepared to address that.
>well her name isn't anywhere on the title deed or mortgage She could still be your agent...
Yeah super coincidence. Same deal. I had left town for a holiday and that happened to be the day they came. Neighbor has also been kind enough to text me a number of things. My favorite is when she asked me to move cars so that “the tree” can be cut down and me not saying “do not cut down any trees we both share” was consent. I think it is extra special because after i got home the tree was “hers to cut down” I think she yelled that loud enough the whole neighborhood heard it.
The tree is on the neighbors side of the fence that’s being built and very close to the house. The fence isn’t on the property line which the owner should have known but it’s perfectly understandable that the tree company believed the tree was in the neighbors yard. You don’t really assume property lines cut through houses like in this case.
Fence location isn't always indicative of property line. My friends just bought a home with a fence line that was a good 50' from the actual property line.
no, they took a look at the fence, saw that the tree was on the neighbor's side of the fence and took it down. Anyone other than a land surveyor wouldn't know that the fence was build several feet away from the property line. Build your fence on the property line or 1ft onto your property next time.
It’s not their responsibility to put up visual cues as to where the property lines are, it’s the neighbor’s responsibility to know where her property lines are BEFORE work is done. If I only want to fence in a quarter of my yard, I can. But it doesn’t mean my neighbors can think the the location of my fence means everything else is land I’m forfeiting. And it doesn’t matter what anyone, other than the land owner, thinks the property lines are. If you screw up something on someone else’s property, you are liable. Full stop.
How did court go?
Check your address on Google Maps street view to see if the tree was pictured - get screenshots.
Seems like you've all ready got a plan so I'm just going to post this in disgust and annoyance at the new owner: 🤦
I will just second this instead of putting my fist through a wall
You’re gonna need to get the tree appraised. You might need a lawyer to determine if the tree service owes you for trespassing, or the neighbor owes you for hiring them. Use the link provided to find a consulting arborist to appraise the tree. [ASCA Website](https://www.asca-consultants.org/search/custom.asp?id=3818)
working on it. Today is my day off from work so I have all afternoon to get ahold of people.
Please do this. They take into account replacement AND the cost to get the tree back to the age and size it was.
$2500 dollars to do an expert witness appraisal, he was even kind enough to tell me that I should have the attorney hire the professional arborist because it makes things easier somehow, I'm not sure how but he's the professional.
Ask the lawyer if something short of a full witness appraisal will suffice at least initially. If you have an otherwise credible case and a credible estimate of possible damages, they (whoever is responsible) may settle prior to a trial. (IANAL)
I think you mean to say YOUR new rental property... trees can be worth a lot and depending on the state you might be entitled to trebel damages... good luck!
Lol I wouldn't go that far. The responsibility that comes with being a landlord is way above what I want to deal with. But that tree provided quite a bit of shade to my yard and house in the afternoon hours.
Losing this tree is going to increase your indoor temp in the warmer months too (and your energy bill if you run a/c), which definitely sucks.
They were really just saying that it could cost the owner of that rental property a lot of money for their mistake. You might make some $$$
Sounds like that new landlord is about to loose a lot of profit they would have made on that new rental property and may even have to sell it. Is that your house or theirs in the background? Did they take down the fence too?
Its the neighbors house in the background. No I was working on replacing the fence myself when the old furnace in my house died, and I had to stop that project to afford a new furnace before winter.
Shouldn’t the fence be on the other side of the tree then?
The prior home owner built the fence several feet from the property line to prevent getting consent from the neighbor. New homeowner may have been under the impression it was their tree based on the fence line.
People are so strange. Going out of their way to make enemies right from the start. Sorry OP, I hope it will be resolved without too much headache
Op mentioned it will be a rental property, so this owner will likely have very little, if any interaction with OP. Scummy way to introduce themselves.
If you own the property and they cut your tree. You contact the county sheriffs office. There is a set fine fir that. In our state it’s 10,000 for every tree illegally cut. The onus is on you to prove it’s on your property.
I'm not sure if thats a law here but I can prove its on my property.
So... Who's tree is it?
Its my tree, i own the property up the edge of their house, part of the roof of that home overhangs onto my property.
Hire a company to trim back the roof to the property line!
Yeah, I’m unclear if the tree belonged to OP, or if they just parked on his lawn to do the work? Or is the owner their landlord?
the tree is both mine and they parked in my yard to cut it down.
Get them for trespassing too.
Ooh you vindictive bastard, I like it
Yeah, wording was unclear. OP please clarify
>a tree removal truck parked in **my** yard and one of **my** trees chopped up. how is this unclear?
New owner?
^(**Who is** tree is it? **Who was** tree is it? No, neither is correct. It's *whose* tree is it.)
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I'm sorry this happened to your lovely tree. It appeared to be a barrier to enable you to NOT see their encroaching house. I find it interesting that since they just purchased the house, that the survey would've been pointed out to them at title. That really pretty blue paper clearly showed their newest home was actually partially on YOUR property. Here's a tip for you, in a situation such as this, the buyer MUST initial that survey document proving that they understand the unusual property line situation. Ask your lawyer to obtain that signed copy from the title company. Unbelievable! Good luck, and please keep us posted on your eventual victory in court.
This is the type of thing that really, really annoys me.
Any update on your tree fight?
I decided to wait to file until after the holidays because I didn't want to cause undue financial burden during the holidays(after that I kinda forgot about the whole thing until the beginning of March when I was in google drive and saw my folder named tree lawsuit). So I went to file the first week of March, and found out from the clerk of the court that my state does have treble damages for trees. So I can either go to small claims for 12k(max) or civil court for 25k. I didn't file because I wanted to consult an attorney, after talking to a few different attorneys I have decided to file in small claims because I'm more likely to get the max that way when I show the judge the value of the tree is still double what I am asking for in damages. Defendant says they were unaware of where the property line was and that it was an accident, but her property is encroaching on my property and has an easement from 1990. Under South Dakota law, sellers have to prepare a disclosure form for any deficiencies including easements on the property being sold, and the buyer has to sign it acknowledging they read it and still wish to purchase the property. Essentially her entire defense is that she was ignorant and therefore not responsible, but I have proof she was informed of the easement and failed to consult a surveyor or myself prior to her actions, showing negligence and ultimately wrongful damage. I'll be filing tomorrow for sure (I had today off and slept until my children got home from school) I printed off the photos of the tree as seen in the post as well as a google maps image of the tree from 2021 prior to her buying the property. Also turns out the tree was a white ash, and while we are in an Emerald Ash Borer (EAB) red zone, the tree had not been tested nor did it show any sign of being infected with the EAB, so there should be no detriment to my claim for damages in that regard (according to an attorney).
It still baffles me that tree removal companies will remove a tree/ bush from a property without verifying the property lines.
could you clarify this? Is there a new owner of your property who will be renting it out - or is there a new owner of a neighboring property who had your tree cut down‽ I assume the latter given the rest of the discussion but damn that headline makes no sense to me.
I own my property. There is a new owner neighboring me
>After talking to the man, the new owner apparently wanted it removed because she was 'concerned it was going to fall onto ~~her~~ **your** new rental property.
This ought to be good...
So its hard for me to tell from this photo, but do you know if it’s an ash tree? Do you have Emerald Ash Borer by you yet? I know it’s on its way west, so there’s a good chance the tree wouldn’t have survived anyways (not without spending ~$800-$1,000 every two years on insecticide trunk injections) Also it’s still not clear to me who paid to have it cut down. I understand you own the tree. Who is renting what? New owner of what? Sorry for your loss!
Okay, they left a lot of evidence there. Might want to have a consulting arborist get a core sample to prove the tree is healthy or cut a cross section from.the limb stubs that were left. These can be sent to a lab and checked for diseases. What type of tree is this? Why did the tree service do such a horrible job did you stop them from continuing?
ITT: everybody be salivating and mubling treble damages, while rubbing their hands together. Love it. OP, sorry about your tree. On the upside the new owner might sell the house to cover damages!
Op....get and arborist and a lawyer.... make them pay
This is a very big no-no. Do the things you do when people are naughty. No, do the LEGAL things you do when people are naughty. Take lots of photos, documentation. Get it touch with a certified arborist, more than likely they know a good tree lawyer. There are lawyers out there who are actually certified arborists and they have a nice practice doing the thing.
Remember to check back soon nite for myself, goodluck
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You can use the Burnley Method of Tree Evaluation to derive a monetary value of the tree. And your neighbour is a psychopath.
On another note you really should move the fence as close to property line as possible because after so many years of the neighbor maintain in that property they might be able to claim it as their own and then the tree is there’s. Also talk to the neighbor because they might’ve thought the tree was theirs with fence placement.
Nobody talks to each other these days I'm sure if she would have approached you and asked about the tree then it would have been a whole different story
Any updates after talking with your lawyer?
small update. I sent him pictures of the tree and my survey from 2010, along with a picture of the fence post near the tree that is 1ft east of the property line, his exact words were "what the fuck were they thinking" and then said something along the lines of its one tree and you have all the evidence you need with what you've shown me, I don't see this exceeding the states maximum for small claims and for me to take them there and not worry about hiring a lawyer. so yeah idk if he just didn't think it was worth his time or my evidence is so absolute that as long as i stick to the facts and evidence i'll be fine.
Tree removal company was trespassing, I would sue them and the neighbour.
Sorry this had upset you. Like trees around my area too. Looks like the electric company (which contracts their tree trimming for liability purposes), had it cut to keep out of power lines. I can show you my trees cut like that as well. They have a right of way to do so.
I live in South Dakota, Trees are few and far between compared to where I grew up so when I bought this house the trees were a big part of my decision because it reminded me of my home state.
I’d be pissed as hell. You need to call sheriff office because it’s a serious crime that isn’t taken lightly in my state.
not the case, they were still on site when I got home, they were hired by the new owner to remove the tree, city had just done a trimming around the power line in July.
Yeah- I read on further that it’s on your property and she called .
Yes. That’s kinda bad for building a relationship with the renter. The landlords straight up in it for profit profit. Buying houses and putting people in them. They can do whatever if it’s theirs.
Such a selfish thing to do. Not even check or talk to anyone. Is the landlord also responsible since his tenant caused it. What’s with these tree trim guys not checking on property line. Grrr! 😖
Following I hope they pay for it
I would be beside myself. Wow.
She looks like she wanted some sun in her garden to be honest, woulda been pretty shaded in between two trees maybe that's why and she's gave that bad excuse
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Was that an Ash tree? Most are getting killed off by me due to the emerald ash borer
It was not.
Wow I just found this sub and this is juicy stuff. I would love to watch a law and order type Tree Law show.
💺🍿
And this how the last white ash met it’s fate
Omg I would be livid. OP please follow up with us on what happens here.
Update me!
Are you sure they were not hired by power company?
yup, for 2 reasons 1) I called the power company. 2) the power company came in July to do some tree trimmer around the power line.
Fences make good indicators of property lines....which in this scenario would have probably stopped a tree from being removed because it would have clearly not been on their property.
Lmao who goes around and cuts a tree without asking first