What to do if my fence is over the property line
A property survey can reveal that a fence is actually built a few feet over the neighbor's property line. Homeowners are forced to debate whether to approach the current owner to buy that small slip of land, or wait it out and hope future buyers don't get a survey. This causes anxiety because while a current landlord might not mind, a new owner could actually care about the boundary.
Core Friction Pattern
Analysis of 2 peer accounts across online developer and community forums reveals that “What to do if my fence is over the property line” repeatedly surfaces due to edge-case mismatches between standard defaults and real-world environments. Standard troubleshooting frequently falls short, compelling practitioners to develop custom workarounds.
+6 alternative community-tested workarounds cataloged below.
What people tried
Every workaround mentioned in the threads below. We haven’t tested any of them — and nobody here is claiming they worked.
Found another way around this?
Share your steps and trade-offs so fellow engineers don't have to reinvent the wheel. No account required.
What to do if my fence is over the property line
- 1Letting sleeping dogs lie and waiting to see if the neighbor brings it up.Did this help you?
- 2Attempting to purchase the encroached strip of land from the neighbor.Did this help you?
- 3Saving up money to eventually move and rebuild the fence on the correct property line.Did this help you?
- 4Treating the fence as the neighbor's property and absolving oneself of responsibility.Did this help you?
- 5Using a root saw or reciprocating saw to cut the invasive rootsDid this help you?
- 6Renting a stump grinder to grind up the surface rootsDid this help you?
- 7Consulting a certified arborist to avoid liability or destabilizing the treeDid this help you?
In their words
Unedited, grouped by where they were said, most upvoted first within each place, each linked to the thread it came from.
“When I purchase my home earlier this year, I had a survey completed and discovered that my fence is about three feet over the property line of my neighbor's property.”source ↗
“I'm debating if I approach the current owner/landlord to try and purchase the little slip of land where my fence is, or if I wait it out and hope the new owners don't get a survey?”source ↗
“I was nervous that a new owner might actually care (whereas the current owner is flipping it and would not care about these three feet).”source ↗
“My neighbor has a cypress tree and it’s roots are popping up in my yard. I’m tired of tripping over these. What is the best way to get rid of them? Thanks l!!”source ↗
Where this came up
People with this problem also raised
- 38Neighbor is encroaching on my property line to sell their house
- 6How to handle a neighbor who won't pay for a shared fence
- 3How to remove a t-post that is flush with the ground?
- 4What should I ask for when a neighbor wants property access?
- 5How to deal with an abandoned house next door
- 2Overgrown bushes blocking the walkway