Neighbor's Tree

Why not just talk to the neighbor about it? Perhaps he is unaware that it effects you so much!

:)

Sounds like a water maple (aka silver maple) - backyard neighbor has one right near my fence, too - GRRR! Hate those things - weak brances (and lots of branches - that will grow right back if lopped off close!)

Bailey - LOL - if only I could do such w/o getting caught!

Not sure about NJ rules, per say, but I live in Texas and have a HUGE tree in my backyard. In Texas, I am responsible for my tree (including the part that hangs into my neighbors yard) and any damage it may cause. With that being said, when we moved in, the first thing I had done was get the branches trimmed that were getting close to my neighbors roof. I also have the tree company come out every year and check for "bad" branches and trim it up.
You can call a tree trimming company and they will probably know the rules for your state/city.
Just my two cents,
R.

I'm not sure of the legality, but I would imagine he only becomes responsible if the tree is going to touch your house. I would start by nicely saying that it looks like the branch will touch your house very soon, and ask what his thoughts are- did he want to wait to take care of it until the fall as that's the best time to trim trees or do something now. This implies patience, that it's not a big deal, and that he has some power to make choices, but it starts the ball rolling with his responsibility.

If he is a stinker about it, then maybe offer to pay half, in the spirit of neighborly harmony. But really, it's his tree. I know we had a neighbor whose tree branches had grown over the fence and made it hard to see a stop sign on the other side. The city made them trim it because it was their tree so their responsibility.

Contact your city hall. In Chicago ,if the tree is on private property, you have to have permission to trim the tree and you foot the costs unless you can get the neighbor to put up some cash. If there is damage, you would have to sue to get reimbursement. My mom's neighbor had this problem. The city sent someone out to inspect the tree (a huge oak) and they ordered the neighbor to trim it within so much time as there were several loose branches. In my town, the town will come inspect but unless the tree is dangerous, too bad. They may step in if a tree is making major damage that could affect the way a fence looks, like if the tree is knocking the fence down. We live on the corner and have to clean up all those helicopters from the maple trees on the parkway.

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Pour a gallon of diesel next to the base of the tree each night when it's dark.

I know a little about trees. I know how to handle loppers. I'd just trim the tree on my side of the property, especially to keep it away from my roof.

Easy enough. Enjoy the summer shade. Good luck to you and yours.

I don't know the law in NJ, but it should be ALL his responsibility. If it's touching your house, it could start to cause damage to your roof. I would talk to them, do not offer to pay for anything.

I'd definitely talk to the neighbor and just see how best to handle it. I'm sure he doesn't want the tree to cause damage to your house! That being said, big shade trees are great, and I"d be thrilled to have one! It's amazing how much a shade tree can reduce your need for a/c in the summer -- I wish we had one!

My hubby would cut the darn thing!

We have a neighbor behind us. When we moved in, there was no fencing. When we went to put in a chainlink fence, we did the whole thing with finding the property markers and such, and they came out and said "No, thats not right"....Umm...yes...it is! So they go their own "expert" out there...guess what...same property markers! LOL

Well they had planted a crabapple tree..messy buggers when they get bigger. We did not want all that mess..plus knew I would be doing daycare soon enough and did not want the future kid-clients picking them up, eating and tossing them, etc. So my hubby talked to them, asked them about helping them move the tree since it was just a baby, etc. Nope. They were still pissy that they were wrong about the property markers I guess.

So every summer when my hubby does the edge trimming of the lawn, and that stupid tree is a bit bigger now 15 years later...he takes the trimmer and cuts their tree...whatever is right at the fenceline! As high as he can reach with the trimmer. The tree is sorta stunted now after all these years from doing this every year. The city told us we are perfectly within our rights according to our city codes. If its on our property, we can do what we want with those branches, etc. So we do. We tried to work with them and they wanted no part of it.

Good luck!

Each state is different but typically if the tree falls on your house they are responsible if you have proof that it fell because of neglagence. As far as the tree almost touching your house, you are more then allowed to have someone come out and cut down the branches about to touch your house. Really it isn't their responsibility to trim something thaat came into your yard naturally. You can't make them clean up your yard, or cut down the tree, or aything like that. If the tree were crooked and falling down she should be responsible but this is more of a Nature grew and now it is invading! Not her fault not your faulteither but if you don't want your house damage you should call and have it trimmed.

I live in NJ as well and you need to ask the town you live in who is responsible for the tree. At any rate if it is leaning over your house I definitely would take it down and let your neighbor know you are going to do that because it would cause alot of damage if it falls.

K.

Bailey!! You are BAD! LOL

I would talk to the neighbor

from my understanding from the tree that fell from my moms neighbors yard into hers, it became her tree as soon as it fell. neighbors insurance company wouldn't pay for it to be removed. the limbs might be your responsibilty since it's in your yard? you can always talk to your neighbor and see if they will go in half with you. but i live in FL and we are the state of if it's in your yard, it's your responsibility. no one likes to "man up" here and do the right thing.

His tree, his problem.

If I remember correctly, the law is that HE is resopnsible for maintaining the tree. If something happens due to negligence (weak branch falls, sap dripping ruins your paint, etc.) then HE is responsible... BUT if it's an act of nature (Heavy winds, ice, etc.) then he isn't.... So, IMO, it's HIS responsibility to trim the tree so that it's not posing a danger to your property.

I would talk to him, and mention the issues the tree is causing you. If the neighbor is pretty amicable, I would just tell him you would like him to get it taken care of sometime during the summer. (that way, it doesn't sound like you are giving him a deadline... but you also aren't giving him infinite amount of time to fix it.) If the neighbor isn't all that friendly with you, then I would pay to have an arborist come and 'evaluate' the situation, and give him an estimate of the tree care.

This is HIS tree. It's bad enough that you will always have to clean up the mess that it is dropping in your yard... your property shouldn't be put at risk too!

Im in Ca.. who knows what the laws are in other places. We have the same problem with trees from neighbors yards and the acorns and leaves that drop into our yard and branches that I can actually reach up and touch from the ground. We had one tree that leaned so far over our yard that we lived in fear of it falling when we get the big wind storms. It would come thru my roof and flatten me as I type right now. That neighbor came over once and asked if I was interested in having it taken out and I said yes, but then he said he would get estimates and send me the bill and I turned him down. Its his tree, its his problem. He did end up having one of the double trunks trimmed out well enough to help. I have the right to trim off whatever is on my side of the fence but not in such a way as to harm the life of the tree. If it falls on my house his homeowners insurance will cover it. If it just lands in my yard and causes no damage, it is mine to do with whatever I choose. I can cut it up and sell the wood if I want. He actually had the tree trimmers use my yard to drop the pieces into and drug out the branches down the side of my house. It was a reasonable way to do it if you could see how his yard is and where the tree was. I had the right to keep any of it, but didnt want to. A few months ago, a neighbor next to me wanted another neighbors tree trimmed so it wouldnt hang on her roof and drop acorns on her lawn. She talked to the neighbor and they didnt want to do major trimming from their side and didnt want to pay a portion of it so my neighbor just had the tree guy come and climb up and trim what was on her side of the fence and they paid for it themselves. So now if the tree is unbalanced and falls on the owners house,, thats his problem. Yep go talk to the tree owner, and see what deal you can both come up with. Might turn out they hate the messy thing too and will want it gone. But I do like the diesel idea.(o:

My neighbor's tree fell on our house, he paid to have it removed. I have a nice neighbor, he legally didn't have to since the storm was an act of god.

Check to make sure but most laws are that what goes over the property line is yours to trim. You cannot trim anything that is on their side and you have to pay the bills.