Neighbor issues--Please advise

[Parrothead]

~2.5 years ago, We purchased a small foreclosure as a starter home. We got a smoking deal on it but it did come with one issue. Our next door neighbor. Apparently, he started to remodel his home and got in WAY over his head. He basically knocked out a exterior wall and then skipped town. He has it covered with a tarp but it is a SERIOUS eyesore. After starting this little project, he has some family health issues and he has not been able to work on the house. I volunteered to work WITH him on the weekends (free of charge) to get something going but he doesn't seem interested.

At this point, its been 2 years--something needs to be done. Not only does this property serve as a refuge for cats, racoons, and other stray animals; I am concerned about squatters moving in on the property.

We are starting the process of shopping/buying our next home. That means we will need to get this one on the market in the near future and i know the house next door will hurt our value. Where do i go from here? Who can i report this to? I know its has to be a code violation.

If i can't get this resolved, i am afraid i will end up renting this house and turning into a landlord (not something i am excited about). Any ideas? Do i have any legal options?

[JeffsSig]

Not sure what the laws might say. But sounds like your in a bad spot. If he would agree Id at least go plaster some plywood or something If he is not living there.

I hope you find a easy fix to the problem.

Maybe buy him out? then rent it.?

Edited April 2, 2012 by JeffsSig

[VERO1]

I would think a call to your local code enforcement/ bulding and zoning office would be the first step.

[Guest RCLARK]

If he is in violation of a building code or a provision of the deed then you can possibly try and force him to do something. Without some violation of a pre existing agreement our neighbors are under no obligation to make improvements to their properties that increase the value of our property. I had a junky flea market next door. I bought it, fixed it up myself and sold it for a profit.

[Parrothead]

i would think he would be violating building codes. Not to mention, he probably needs a building permit to remove a exterior wall. I can't imagine it standing too much longer--the roof is starting to sag. BUT--if the thing falls over tomorrow i am not in a better spot than i am right now......

[mikegideon]

I would call codes. I don't think anybody will make people act right anymore. But, an outside wall is usually load bearing. If the building is structurally unsafe, codes will probably be all over it. An architect can take one glance and tell you for sure. They can also tell you who to call.

[Curiousgb]

Flaming arrows.....

[NRA]

Build a big fence

[Parrothead]

I put in a 6ft privacy fence. Anyone purchasing the house will look on the other side (sadly)

[personDJ]

I don't know much about this type thing but it seems to me the answer here is paper. yes paper may fix your problem. Maybe you could sell it for what you can get. Claim it is worth much more and recover the loss from taxes that you will not pay. Please remember I don't know of what I speak. My hope is that someone here can take this bull ( paper ) and run all the way to the bank for you.

I hope I am not acting to much of a fool . Good Luck

[Curiousgb]

I bought a house in Charleston once. Great neighborhood, really nice houses. Between the time I signed and closed the neighbor build a pool. That is itself not a problem. Turns out my new neighbor should have been in a reality show, the Redneck Kardashian's. She had gotten some "settlement" and bought the house. It was two years of hell. She was a total ass, had parties that lasted all night and generally pissed off everyone she came in contact with. The whole neighborhood rejoiced when she moved.

Now I have the best neighbors in the world. They are a gift.

[QuietDan]

This is all jurisdictional.

Find out, for sure, just exactly what jurisdiction you are in. Are you actually in Johnson City, or a portion of the county near Johnson City? (I'm looking at your avatar for the city name.)

If you are in Johnson City, find out who your city councilman is by ward, or if they are at large. Talk to him or her and describe your problem and concerns. If they don't have the same last name, or are married to each other's sisters, ask for assistance to wade through the process.

This will involve the City's or the County's Code Enforcement function. If your junky neighbor doesn't have the same last name of someone in Codes enforcement, and they aren't married to each other's sisters, let them know what your concerns might be and that you are working with the City Councilman on the issue. All of this goes forward much more reliably if you do it in WRITING. If you phone them or talk to them, they might just ignore you, but paper doesn't go away. As much as you might not like lawyers or working with lawyers or paying lawyers, lawyers live in the land of paper. If they are good, they can make the paperwork dance to your tune.

Be patient. Be polite to anyone who has any say about your issue. If you are an ###hole to the bureaucrats, they can find about a million ways to screw you over, or make it take forever, or make it your fault, or ignore you. If someone needs to be an ###hole to move it all forward, let your lawyer be the ###hole. You might find out he's married to someone's sister that can make it all work out in your favor.

I don't know your town, and what the last names of the important people are, or what their sisters' names might be. It's different in every town; except it's really never different anywhere.

I hope you don't think I'm making this up, because I'm not.

[Guest uofmeet]

if he is not there, you can always go get some plywood and put something up their that at least looks better. Maybe pay like $100 to save a couple thousands?

Just a thought.

[Guest db99wj]

Code enforcement would be your first stop. Also, you said he has skipped town? I would imagine he is not paying for it anymore and it is either going into foreclosure, or is in foreclosure, or has been foreclosed on. At this point, the financial entity or it if it is sold at foreclosure, the buyer, is responsible for the property. If this is the case, a call to the bank/financial institution would be in order. It is in their best interest to protect the property from further damage.

[Smith]

Whether you get codes involved, foreclosure, ect it will take a pretty long time before anything will happen to it. Especially, if he fights it. Your neightbor sounds like the house next to my neighbors house. They tore down part of it, put a tarp on the exposed side and the roof. I also saw them get FEMA aid after the flood (we were a mile from water damage ) and I assume pocket the money. They are still randomly living there. Hurts everyones porperty value. NOt to mention the American flag that is hanging by a thread and was due to be replaced 2 years ago.

Edited April 2, 2012 by Smith

[mikegideon]

Whether you get codes involved, foreclosure, ect it will take a pretty long time before anything will happen to it. Especially, if he fights it. Your neightbor sounds like the house next to my neighbors house. They tore down part of it, put a tarp on the exposed side and the roof. I also saw them get FEMA aid after the flood (we were a mile from water damage ) and I assume pocket the money. They are still randomly living there. Hurts everyones porperty value. NOt to mention the American flag that is hanging by a thread and was due to be replaced 2 years ago.

Not sure you can fight codes. I've supervised quit a bit of commercial construction, and those folks are god. That's why I would call one of my architect friends and ask, if I thought there was a chance of a strucural issue. They deal with codes every day. I don't know exactly how codes would handle the residential stuff, but they exist to prevent unsafe practices, and have the power to enforce.

[Smith]

Not sure you can fight codes. I've supervised quit a bit of commercial construction, and those folks are god. That's why I would call one of my architect friends and ask, if I thought there was a chance of a strucural issue. They deal with codes every day. I don't know exactly how codes would handle the residential stuff, but they exist to prevent unsafe practices, and have the power to enforce.

No, you can't fight codes. Kinda like the IRS, however it will still take a while to get any final remedy for the property. They can shut you down REAL quick, but I don't know how fast they can move an unmotivated person.

[mikegideon]

i'm reasonably sure they can condemn the structure. You know what's next after that.

[UncleJak]

I'm not quite the same situation, but my house is better maintained than the one to its left. SO, I am planting a nice row of evergreen trees. Maybe it will hide the poorly landscaped house next to me. If my situation was as bad as yours, I'd def take the codes route.

[Guest db99wj]

If he is there, code will be your route, you might even look at environmental court.

If he is not there, I'm guessing there is, has, or in the process of being foreclosed. Your route will be the new buyer.

[mikegideon]

Codes will go after whoever owns the property, even a bank.

[Guest pfries]

Many jurisdictions also have a blight ordinance which would force him to fix the issue witin a specifide amount of time. This is how I resolved a similar issue up north.

[Guest db99wj]

Codes will go after whoever owns the property, even a bank.

Absolutely. My point is the bank, once they take the house back, are suppose to do what they can to protect their new asset from deteriorating further. If the new owner bank or lender is not willing to do anything, which is bad business, bad PR, bad management, bad practices, bad investor relations, etc, then you still have code.

The bank/lender doesn't want it, period. They don't need anymore bad assets on their books. They also don't want the value to go down on assets they own. That affects not only their asset amount, but their ability to loan money and other things. So, a prudent bank/lender is first and foremost, going to stop any further deterioration of the asset and to secure it so that it is safe and not a public nuisance. They timing may be a problem, the amount of time from when it starts to when they actually take ownership. Also, they may or may not understand fully the extent of the damage and problems. The appraisal should have relayed this information. An out of town bank might be slower to react or know unless they are told. Also, when it comes to code and fines, who is going to pay, bank doesn't want to be paying a bunch of fines for their properties, the home owner might say FU, and not do anything and it could take forever to happen.