Posted by Frank Chin on May 06, 2005 at 07:28:20:
BB:
I’m not an attorney. But this is an issue that involves you, your neigbor, as well as the prior owner of your property.
First of all, was there a verbal or written agreement between the prior prior owner and your neighbor??
I had “post closing” issues with prior owners, with one case going to court. If you can get your closing attorney to write the seller’s attorney (prior owner) to see what they have to say. I had my attorney write one or two letters, but I was told that if its going to be an ongoing thing, he’ll bill me, so speak to the parties yourself after the attorney notifies them of the issue to minimize attorney fees.
Is it an issue that you want to be reimbursed because you feel you bought the place with the trellis??
If its not too expensive, why don’t you remove it. If not, see if you can get the prior owner to help pay the expenses.
Finally, does your deed read “Bargain and sale deed with Covenants against Grantors acts”??
If so, then this may be a case of the “grantors act” that you may want to pursue. But its not something I want to make a big case out of.
Frank Chin