<p>ldmom06, I agree. We had a problem a while back with a neighbor. During a bad storm a tree fell from my property onto his. I didn’t know about it. He never called me, told me, asked me to remove the tree. A few weeks after the storm I got a bill in my mailbox from a contractor who had apparently removed the tree. I refused to pay the bill given that I had already had a licensed contractor on my property directly after the storm and that I had NOT hired the contractor he hired. I was not a happy camper.
I confess I didn’t read the whole fence thread. I have a rental with a difficult neighbor. She wanted to replace a jointly owned fence with a very expensive one. I refused and told her that if she wanted to replace the fence she should put one up on her property line. BUT the fence wasn’t the only issue. She had been difficult all the way down the line.<br>
I feel for the woman who wants to put up the fence. Has she ever called the police on these kids? Have the other neighbors? Have the parents of the kid been approached?</p>
<p>ebeeee, I don’t think you are obligated to pay a bill for a service you did not request. If the contractor can provide a piece of paper (contract) with your signature requesting his services and authorizing the service (which obviously he can’t) then fine. Otherwise, he has no issue with you. Any chance your neighbor “pretended” to be you when he/she hired him?</p>
<p>I agree with jym…that sounds really suspicious ebeee! And I wouldn’t pay him either. I’m a stickler about getting bona fide airtight quotes for services and it’s my pet peeve when contractors show up with surprise billings. JUST happened to me Friday! Had my kitchen counter top polished for an agreed upon price and after the work was done, the contractor said…“oh by the way, did the girl in the office tell you that there was also an additional $75 for ‘diagnosing the problem’?” Uh NO…she did not tell me and uh NO I am not paying it. Grrrrrrrrr. I can’t imagine someone showing up and telling me they removed my tree for me without my knowledge and and ‘that’ll be X bucks’. I’d have them for lunch.</p>
<p>I am a licensed contractor so believe me he picked on the wrong person. I refused to pay the bill. I didn’t hire the guy so why would I pay? Absolutely re: quotes for services…I never heard of diagnosing the problem for a kitchen counter…that is ridiculous. We always give a written estimate and get it signed for before doing any work.<br>
I don’t think my neighbor pretended to be me, I think he just hired someone off the street, unlicensed and then tried to get me to pay the bill. The tree guy I use has been working with state agencies to bust unlicensed contractors. He has trouble because his price is higher than the guys who are unlicensed because he has to pay worker’s comp. for tree guys (which is not cheap).<br>
While I am on a rant, NEVER, as a homeowner, hire an unlicensed contractor particularly for high ladder or tree work or electrical stuff. If someone gets hurt on your property you are in for a lot of trouble.</p>
<p>IDMOM06 - go back to post #53…Don and I (and our spouses) are going to write a joint letter, saying that we are disappointed that she chose to plan to install a fence without discussing it with us and that she was not willing to try to find a more acceptable solution, …etc… go back and read it and see if you really think this letter is a cordial communication - and another post after that as well regarding communicating with Connie - still call it bullying - not very nice at all. No wonder connie is digging her heels in.</p>
<p>…Regarding survey stakes. If there was no notification of anyone regarding the stakes, and no signs regarding the purpose of the stakes, then it is unreasonable to expect that they would not possibly be disturbed…The OP stated at the beginning that when she saw the survey being done - she inquired - so she knew!! No excuse.</p>
<p>Speaking of tree work. Tomorrow I have to be on site as our tree contractor takes down our huge 200 year old signature oak at the entrance to the subdivision. Sob! It’s rotted from the inside out and a danger, so it has to go. By tomorrow evening, I predict the phone will be ringing off the hook as residents call my husband to gripe about losing the tree. Of course, none of them will have paid attention to the letters from the landscaping committee issued over the last month explaining the pending loss of the tree.</p>
<p>Oh well… I’m a tree-hugger…tomorrow will be traumatic for me.</p>
<p>ebeeee-
That’s funny that you happen to be a contractor. Hope the bill had a nice quick trip to file 13! Did you ever address this issue with your neighbor? If so, how did that conversation go?
Also, agree about using licensed people who can show you a copy of their liability insurance</p>
<p>
</p>
<p>jym626, I just got the impression here that these were older kids/teenagers because they are differentiated from “younger children”. After more than a year of harassment and vandalism, I think it is understandable that Connie take action. She didn’t want a fence up until now, so she must feel forced into paying several thousand dollars to protect herself. I wonder how the OP and Don would feel if it was their property being damaged and their younger children being threatened? Also, do they not worry that they live so near to people that would behave like this? And furthermore that the neighbors are more worried about their view than the fact that a fellow neighbor is being threatened? (Maybe Connie should get a gun since she is clearly on her own here.) That is the first issue.</p>
<p>The second issue is the nature of the neighborhood. Some neighborhoods have a predominant character, such as young families, retired people, young professional couples, singles, etc. Then there are some well integrated neighborhoods where you find a nice mix of all types. In fact, I have seen the character of my parents’ neighborhood change several times over the past 40 years. Sometimes there are lots of young kids, sometimes teens, sometimes very few kids. I wonder if the OP is trying not to say that Connie just doesn’t fit into what she wants or perceives her neighborhood to be.</p>
<p>Also, I would just like to note that installation of a chain link fence will not require any workers on any propery other than Connie’s. They will measure and dig post holes with a small hand tool. Then they will cement them in place by mixing up small amounts of Quickcrete (or something similar). After a day or two, they will return to level the poles to the proper height using a pipe-cutter type tool. Finally, on that day they will attach the mesh and use a small stretcher machine. It really should provide no noise or inconvenience to any adjacent properties.</p>
<p>Jeepmom-
If I read the original post correctly, it was not the OP, but rather her neighbor “Don” who saw the surveying being done and then called “connie”. It was after the conversation with Connie that he spoke to the OP. Why are you on such a quest to protect this supposed helpless little old lady? And whose to say that the way the OP described the “to be written” letter here is actually how the letter will be written. I think there are a lot of assumptions being made here.</p>
<p>I think Don asked about the survey, not the OP. </p>
<p>I stand by my opinion that a professional letter informing Connie to notify her contractors they should not conduct their work anywhere but on Connie’s property is acceptable and wise for protection against any civil action should someone be injured. Connie doesn’t want people on her property, she should be fine with respecting the property of others, and requests related to that property.</p>
<p>Okay…everyone…it’s LDmom…lol! And no…it doesn’t stand for Language-Delayed mom…(JYM!! rofl!)</p>
<p>Lkf-
I believe that the OP (wish she’d come back to respond to all of this stuff…) said she and other neighbors had also had problems with the neighbor’s kids. Too bad that Connie didn’t choose instead to call the OP and Don and suggest that they all try to approach the parents of the little juvies instead of the route that she took, but she didn’t. As for the gun, I am pretty sure you said that tongue in cheek. Anyone else get the sneaking suspicion that this thread ceased being about “Connie” a long time ago?</p>
<p>OK - then I apologize for making an error - but from what has been posted by the OP - and we are only seeing one side of this issue - I am definitely not impressed regarding how the OP is handling this at all. The agenda is what bothers me - and an elderly woman - alone in a house - who has the legal right to put up a fence - should not be having to deal with the likes of what I am seeing posted here.</p>
<p>If she is following the law - and it seems that she is - just because the OP doesn’t like her choices - it is tooo darn bad - there is NO reason to make the situation that much more difficult - and stressful - for any of the parties. I would certainly rather see the parties respect what the rights are and then move forward and deal with it respectfully - instead of in a challanging and threatening manner.</p>
<p>There are no covenents - no associations - no illegal events occuring. Make the best of a not so good situation and move on - make lemonaide when served lemons - instead of trying to make rotten apple pies. Sometimes it better to be ‘neighborly’ than to fight a system that you really have no chance of winning. Better to try to cooperative - maybe even tongue in cheek - to make it work out in a positive way. JMHO</p>
<p>Good grief Jeep - the OP hasn’t been around for days…since she and we last discussed plantings for around the fencing. What’s your ish with her?</p>
<p>Btw…I don’t blame her for not coming back. She asked for a little sympathy, some advice about plants and some of you have gone way overboard spinning what little she has said into something unrecognizable and untrue…wringing all context from her words. For shame.</p>
<p>“Make the best of a not so good situation…”
That reminds me a sort of “Gift of the Magi” story in reverse that happened with my parents (both older curmudgeonly people).</p>
<p>Their property is positioned in such a way that their neighbor, if looking sideways through my parents’ backyard from his backyard, gets a lake view. The lake is 3 actually lots down, from my parents backyard.</p>
<p>So neighbor decides to build a pool with a big screened in deck, and puts all the water works on my parents side of his house, right next to the porch that they sit in every night to enjoy the “lake”. Parents discuss the location of the ugly pumps and pipes with neighbor, because they really don’t want it 5 feet away from their porch, and neighbor says he wants it there because <em>he</em> doesn’t want to look at it (he won’t be able to see it from his own porch).</p>
<p>So parents put up a hedge to sheild themselves from the noise and appearance of the plumbing equipment, as well as not have to <em>watch</em> the neighbors everytime they’re in their pool. </p>
<p>Neighbor gets PO’d about the hedge because now it’s blocking his view of the lake. He starts dumping his excess pool water through a hose onto the hedge bed, but the water leeches under the bed and kills all the grass on the other side instead of the hedge.</p>
<p>Parents go to neighbor and they get into a heated argument, neighbor yelling about the hedge blocking his view, parent yelling about the pool water…</p>
<p>The moral of the story is… pick your battles carefully.</p>
<p>Doubleplay - very good post 
It emphasizes what can and does happen - sadly tho more often than alot of folks think. Seems tho that parents should have some recourse tho - have they looked into it at all?</p>
<p>…Btw…I don’t blame her for not coming back. She asked for a little sympathy, some advice about plants and some of you have gone way overboard spinning what little she has said into something unrecognizable and untrue…wringing all context from her words. For shame. …</p>
<p>Excuse me?!?!? better go back and read some of your own posts then. One side was presented by the OP - there is another side to this that no one here has privy to - discussion has certainly brought out other possibilities - and differences of opinion. If one does not like - or be willing to accept the possibilities relating to the info/advice they are seeking - as presented - they may want to reconsider posting it.</p>
<p>Seeing as the OP has been back - actually yesterday - and it seems the agrivation factor continues on their part - I do feel that this issue is an ongoing discussion that anyone has the right to express their feelings on - to each their own.</p>
<p>jym, I did say the gun thing tongue-in-cheek, but you never know. If she had one, she wouldn’t be the first senior citizen keep a gun for protection. I guess I just can’t get over the feeling that superficial stuff has become more important than people. :(</p>
<p>you’re excused. 
(Sorry couldn’t resist). </p>
<p>Okay…ahem… </p>
<p>As one of our most esteemed posters put it so well a few weeks ago…we NEVER have the privilege of knowing anything other than what is presented here by our posters. It’s fine to speculate about what we may not know, but to suggest that a poster has some sinister unspoken agenda (‘Connie doesn’t fit in so she isn’t wanted’??) is way over the line.</p>
<p>I definitely agree we can’t and shouldn’t speculate on agendas. The OP’s posts is what I base my unease on–and from her words, I feel more sympathetic to the neighbor, not the OP. Her crime, apparently, was tried in the court of upscale esthetics, and having been found wanting, she apparently deserves all the disapproval and extra costs she gets.</p>
<p>Some neighbors seem to either not understand or not sympathize with the Connie’s position. They are more worried about their view and property value than about their elderly neighbor. Just wait, we are all going to get there some day.</p>
<p>I guess if I’m over the line, I need a fence too! :D</p>