L
LucieNJ
Guest
What is the name of your state?
New Jersey
My mother has lived in her home for 30 years. There
is a common driveway between her home and her
neighbor's home. The neighbor has recently sold his
home and we now have a problem.
The driveway leads to the side entrance of my mom's
home, and further back to the entrance to her fenced yard.
To the right, it leads to the neighbor's garage and
unfenced yard. As per her original survey, the area parallel
to her fence, and in front of her yard gate, is on her property line.
We have parked one car in this spot since the home was purchased, as did the home's previous owners.
The neighbors, who were already living there when we purchased the home, have always parked their 2 cars
to the right of ours, in front of their garage.
There were never any problems, as both families
ensured that the common area of the driveway
was never blocked.
However, when the neighbors moved, they did not advise
the new owners of the situation. They claim that they were
led to believe that the driveway belonged to them, and
that my mom only has "right of passage", and cannot
park her car there. They have proceeded to park their
cars so as to block entrance and exit to the driveway, and
have advised her that she will be receiving a letter from
their lawyer.
While I believe that our survey will demonstrate
that the area where mom is parking is on her property,
I do not know if the driveway is in fact their property.
We have always referred to it as a common driveway.
In the past, our family has split the cost for repaving the driveway and for snow removal with the old neighbor. In addition, when the old neighbor installed an above ground
pool about 20 years ago, he was required to fence the area. Rather than fence his entire yard, he requested our family's approval to install a fence across the portion of the driveway
that is between the 2 homes. We granted permission, and
while the pool is gone, the fence remains. One post is on
our property, and when open, the gate rests on the side
of our home, adjacent to the side door.
Also, about 3-4 yrs ago, when my mother refinanced,
a new survey was performed. The surveyor advised
my mom that the neighbor's garage was actually sitting
2 feet on her property.
I'm really treading in unknow waters here, and could use
some advise as to where we should start to try to
resolve this situation! My mom is elderly and on her own,
and I hate the thought of her having problems with
neighbors at this stage in her life.
What is the best way to handle this? Where and
how do I go about finding information about the ownership
of the actual driveway? How can we find out if an easement
exists? Do we need to have another survey done?
Any advice will be GREATLY appreciated!
New Jersey
My mother has lived in her home for 30 years. There
is a common driveway between her home and her
neighbor's home. The neighbor has recently sold his
home and we now have a problem.
The driveway leads to the side entrance of my mom's
home, and further back to the entrance to her fenced yard.
To the right, it leads to the neighbor's garage and
unfenced yard. As per her original survey, the area parallel
to her fence, and in front of her yard gate, is on her property line.
We have parked one car in this spot since the home was purchased, as did the home's previous owners.
The neighbors, who were already living there when we purchased the home, have always parked their 2 cars
to the right of ours, in front of their garage.
There were never any problems, as both families
ensured that the common area of the driveway
was never blocked.
However, when the neighbors moved, they did not advise
the new owners of the situation. They claim that they were
led to believe that the driveway belonged to them, and
that my mom only has "right of passage", and cannot
park her car there. They have proceeded to park their
cars so as to block entrance and exit to the driveway, and
have advised her that she will be receiving a letter from
their lawyer.
While I believe that our survey will demonstrate
that the area where mom is parking is on her property,
I do not know if the driveway is in fact their property.
We have always referred to it as a common driveway.
In the past, our family has split the cost for repaving the driveway and for snow removal with the old neighbor. In addition, when the old neighbor installed an above ground
pool about 20 years ago, he was required to fence the area. Rather than fence his entire yard, he requested our family's approval to install a fence across the portion of the driveway
that is between the 2 homes. We granted permission, and
while the pool is gone, the fence remains. One post is on
our property, and when open, the gate rests on the side
of our home, adjacent to the side door.
Also, about 3-4 yrs ago, when my mother refinanced,
a new survey was performed. The surveyor advised
my mom that the neighbor's garage was actually sitting
2 feet on her property.
I'm really treading in unknow waters here, and could use
some advise as to where we should start to try to
resolve this situation! My mom is elderly and on her own,
and I hate the thought of her having problems with
neighbors at this stage in her life.
What is the best way to handle this? Where and
how do I go about finding information about the ownership
of the actual driveway? How can we find out if an easement
exists? Do we need to have another survey done?
Any advice will be GREATLY appreciated!