Encroachment In Real Estate: Definition And Meaning

When you’re looking to buy a home, you’re hoping your property rights will be unfettered. However, things like trees growing over your property or structures built partially on your land can impede this ideal. In this article, we’ll discuss how encroachments impact you as a property owner and different ways you can deal with them.

What Is Encroachment?

An encroachment is any physical impingement of your property rights that you didn’t okay.  Examples include something put there by your neighbor or the extension of an element of nature that originated on your neighbor’s property spilling onto yours. Technically, if a tree is planted on your neighbor’s yard and the branches extend over your property line, it’s encroachment.

If an encroachment results in someone staking a claim to property based on something new they want to do or historical precedent based on a preexisting structure that’s been around since before you bought the property, this could likely be considered an encumbrance. Encumbrances affect the title to your property and may affect the value of your home.

That’s not to say all encumbrances are bad or even uncommon. If you have a mortgage on your home, the lien on your house is an encumbrance. The easement for a utility company to service equipment on your property is also an encumbrance. The same is true of a public right-of-way that goes across your property to get to a main road.

Finally, it’s worth noting that even outside active encumbrances may have restrictions on what you can do even on your own property. For example, local zoning ordinances typically apply.

Encroachment Vs. Easement

That brings us to the topic of encroachment vs. easement. An encroachment is when your property lines are violated, innocently or otherwise, without your say so. However, not everything rises to the level of acrimony. If you have an agreement with your neighbor, that’s an easement. Once created, an easement stays with the property. It applies no matter the owner.

Examples Of Encroachments

Now that we’ve touched on some of the basics, let’s run through some examples. We’ll start with some of the more minor issues and move to ones that may be more concerning.

Minor Encroachments

There are some encroachments so minor that you may not even think of them as such. Let’s run through a few quick examples.

• Fence: By definition, fences tend to straddle property lines. It isn’t uncommon for them to come down on the wrong side by a foot or two.
• Landscaping: For most people, plants or other landscaping features that start on the property of one neighbor and cross to the other aren’t really an issue. The exception might be if it’s some sort of invasive species.
• Hoop dreams: Because of the way basketball hoops are constructed, there is an overhang feature, particularly when the hoop is freestanding. The hoop hanging over your property isn’t likely something you would consider an issue. Of more concern might be the direction the hoop is facing. You would want to make sure any missed shots don’t clang off the rim and hit your neighbor’s car.

Major Encroachments

There are minor issues, but there may also be things you should be more concerned with as a property owner. Consider the following:

• Substantial physical structures: A structure like a garage or shed built over property lines could be more of an issue because it takes up a more substantial piece of your property than the examples we talked about above. It could affect your property value.
• Tree limbs: Tree branches over your roof are a homeowners insurance claim waiting to happen if you have a big storm go through. This could be a major liability issue as well.

Problems Encroachments Can Cause                                        

Beyond your ability to enjoy your property exactly as you would wish, there are multiple problems that can be caused by encroachments. We’ll highlight a few of them.

There are many elements to this, but the basic idea of adverse possession is that if someone is using your property for their own purposes, you’re aware of it and you allow it to happen for a period of time that differs across states, the property can eventually become theirs in the eyes of the law.

If you don’t mind what they’re doing, but don’t want it to affect your property rights, the simplest thing to do is give them permission for the activity. It’s an agreement between you, but it doesn’t have to affect your property rights permanently.

It’s also worth noting that depending on what the encroachment is, it could have a major impact on the resale value of your property. As an example, a neighbor has a large, abandoned chicken coop on your property line. Over time it’s become an unstable structure, a shelter for pests, and an overall eyesore. When you’re ready to sell your home, this could be an issue for many buyers, potentially effecting the final sale price of your home.

There’s also the potential for liability issues. If your neighbor has a pool that’s partially on your property and someone slips and falls getting out, resulting in a busted-up shoulder, that could end up being a claim on your homeowners insurance.

All encroachments should also be listed on the title, so that’s something else to think about as well. It has to be accurate so that everyone knows the property rights going in and no one with a claim will come out of the woodwork down the line. Your real estate agent should be able to help you look into any encroachments that apply to homes you’re looking at.

How To Resolve Encroachments In Real Estate

If you have an issue to figure out regarding an encroachment on your property, here’s a list of actions you can take to resolve property line disputes:

Talk With Your Neighbor

Many people are reasonable if given the chance. The easiest first step to take is to talk to your neighbor about their intentions with the property being encroached upon. Depending on how that conversation goes, that may determine what your next step is regarding how you handle the encroachment. Some solutions are easier than others.

Grant An Easement

If you generally have no problem with what your neighbor is doing, consider granting them an easement that allows them to use your property in this way. As an example, it’s not uncommon to have a portion of a driveway pass through another’s property on the way to the garage.

Get A Property Survey

If there is a legitimate question as to where your land ends and that of your neighbor begins, the best solution to this is probably to get a professional property survey. In this way, once the boundaries are verified, you and your neighbor can do what you want on your side of the property line.

Sell Part Of Your Land To Your Neighbor

If you’re not using your land and your neighbor is, you could also look at this as a potential moneymaking opportunity. This involves physically selling that portion of your land to your neighbor. To do this properly, there would be some title work involved, but it could be done.

Bring The Encroachment To Court

If your neighbor is using your property in a way you don’t agree with and all other attempts at remedy have failed, your next best option may be to press your case in court. Of course, this isn’t the preferred route.

You might have to hire an attorney. At the very least, there would be court fees involved. Additionally, if the court rules against you, what you thought was your property could permanently become your neighbor’s.

The Bottom Line

An encroachment is any use of your property without your prior approval. Not all encroachments are inherently bad. A lien from your mortgage company or permission for the electric company to work on your property is an encroachment. However, major encroachments like tree limbs over your property or large physical structures could harm your property value, create liability and cause title issues.

There are several ways an encroachment can be resolved amicably such as an easement or selling that particular portion of your property to the neighbor. Taking them to court could be a last resort. Now that you know what to look for when it comes to encroachments, apply online to get your home buying journey started on the right foot.