The Watkins Firm has extensive experience working to resolve a neighbor dispute in San Diego and Southern California.  Two of the most common areas of disputes between neighbors include boundary disputes and the blocking of a view.  Boundary disputes between neighbors often include fence lines, driveways or encroachment of a building across lot lines.  Most people reasonably believe this is a matter of “black and white” or, rather, “is it across the line or not?”

Unfortunately, California real estate law doesn’t necessarily always follow this legal distinction.  In legal fact, California has a longstanding legal guideline of “fairness” when a boundary line is in dispute between neighbors.  For example, if a building, driveway or fence line crosses the lot line but the court feels forcing the neighbor to remove it would cause greater expense and harm than the loss of that portion of the encroached neighbor’s parcel(s) the court may very well side with a neighbor who has encroached your lot line.

However, our Courts also recognize the exceptional value of every square foot of land in the San Diego area.  Just compensation at the minimum, an order for removal and respect of the boundary line when necessary.  What is the right answer in your unique situation?

The legal issues when working to resolve a neighbor dispute in San Diego are actually quite complex.  It may very well be possible to enforce your lot lines and seek an order for the neighbor to move or remove the violation.  You may choose to accept appropriate compensation for the encroachment.  The question of who would prevail is not a simple one, and it is important to seek the guidance of San Diego real estate attorneys with more than four decades of experience in the matter at the Watkins Firm.

We are often asked to help resolve a neighbor dispute in San Diego which involves the blocking of a view.  The enjoyment of a view is definitely one of the most valuable aspects of San Diego real estate and a constant source of contention between neighbors.  The dispute may center around trees or other vegetation or it may involve the construction of a new outbuilding, home addition or even a deck.  Protecting a view or legally constructing an addition to the dismay of a neighbor often leads to a legal dispute.  The Watkins Firm takes a unique approach to disputes which is specifically designed to resolve the matter in a timely and cost-effective manner while accomplishing our client’s goals and objectives.

Pro-Tip: “Boundary disputes range from an old fence that fell over and someone put it back up. People acting as their own fence contractors and not using a surveyor or soil subsidence. You take out an old retaining wall, you put in something that’s rots away, and all of a sudden your land is now on the neighbor’s land and the big rain comes, and all of a sudden everybody’s fighting and arguing.

Someone gets an estimate and no one wants to believe how much it’s going to cost, and then they fight. And then you have trouble having resolutions. Hard words are spoken, feelings are hurt, and everybody digs their heels in and they would rather pay their lawyer billions of dollars than be reasonable. So we get a lot of those, and we are able to help to resolve them, I’d say 90% of the time. But sometimes there’s real legitimate disputes that you have to fight for and boundary disputes, building a fence across the line, building a building, a storage shed, whatever. Putting a driveway across your neighbor’s land. There’s a lot of ways that you can really get into an area where you have to defend your property. You’ve got a million dollar property, 10,000 square foot lot, it doesn’t take a rocket scientist to talk about how much per square foot you got.

It’s a very expensive piece of land now. And somebody just taking a couple feet here, shaving it off, adds up to a couple hundred feet over the entire property line. And then you have a messed up title. You also may not realize, you’re messing up your obligations to your lender. It spirals out of control. All the problems when people don’t face reality …  fix the boundary line problem and follow the law.  It isn’t in your interest to pursue these issues on your own. This is an area where you need a really good attorney.” – Dan Watkins, Founding Partner

If you are looking for attorneys with decades of experience who will help to resolve a neighbor dispute in San Diego we invite you to review our podcast Episode 44 – Neighbor Disputes as well as the strong recommendations of our clients and contact the Watkins Firm or call 858-535-1511 for a complimentary consultation today.