House-flipping Neighbor fails to listen to warnings about getting landscaping permits, learns the hard way: 'Their backyard is still not finished'

Author image for Brad Dickson
Brad Dickson • Managing Editor
May 21, 2024 6:00 PM EDT

Advice is one of those funny things—you should always listen to it when someone is willing to give it. But in giving it, you need to remember that not a lot of people are going to appreciate it—whether or not they need to hear it… and whether or not they asked for it in the first place. Of course, the people who are most in need of advice but refuse to listen anyway are just people who are determined to learn things the hard way. Ensuring that you've done the proper paperwork and taking necessary precautions, even when you don't really want to, is just something some people need to learn in this manner.

After all, rules exist for a reason… and they're usually written as a result of someone else's consequences. This means that the last thing you should do is assume that you know better than the rule itself and that you'll be the one getting a different result.

Advertisement
  • 01
    Between them starting construction 6 days a week before 7am and them blocking the road, I guess someone had had enough. Next thing I know city officials are
    via u/TenebrousSunshine
  • 02
    Husband tries to warn neighbors about their landscaping, gets told to mind his own business.....
    via u/TenebrousSunshine
  • 03
    Some background: my husband is pretty handy. Prior to Covid, he had done several flip houses as a "fun" side gig (it's what he loves to do), and he became very familiar with a ton of city codes.
    via u/TenebrousSunshine
  • 04
    During Covid, seems everyone was suddenly buying houses to flip out of boredom and prices sky rocketed, so he put that on hold. So then he started doing household repairs and upgrades, building fences, etc. around the neighborhood as well. To get a better understanding of the neighborhood HOA bylaws and whatnot, he joined the HOA Architectural Committee. Through that he learned all there was to know about what was allowed and what was not, how the process worked, how to work around things, etc.
    via u/TenebrousSunshine
  • 05
    Long story short, my husband was VERY knowledgeable in what to do and not do, and various processes with the neighborhood AND the city. Our next door neighbor decided they were going to start. landscaping their backyard, and they I guess planned to make theirs as similar to our backyard as
    via u/TenebrousSunshine
  • 06
    possible. Problem was, despite being next door neighbors, our land was quite different. For one thing, behind our house was a bunch of brush and pine trees maybe 3-4' from the lake that's at the back of the house. We didn't have to do a whole lot to clear the area, but the brush on their property was about 1/3 of their yard (I'd say 10' from the water?).
    via u/TenebrousSunshine
  • 07
    Also, the way the houses on our street are, the land naturally made like a valley, where the house to our right is at the "top", we're in the middle, and the next two houses are at the bottom before it very quickly rises again.
    via u/TenebrousSunshine
  • 08
    First thing the neighbors did was cut down all the trees in their backyard. They were not small trees either, but 4 story tall trees or more. Husband and neighbor were talking about the backyard plans when my husband casually mentioned he was surprised the city gave him permission to cut down so many trees (in our city,
    via u/TenebrousSunshine
  • 09
    you had to have an arborist give permission to cut down any trees that were X ft tall. Neighbor first said it wasn't the city's business what he did with his backyard, then told my husband to mind his own business. Ok. Fair enough.
    via u/TenebrousSunshine
  • 10
    Then they started putting up the retaining wall to bring it up to level with our property, which would have been about 7-8' tall. Basically they were just stacking a bunch of cinderblocks. My husband uneasily asked if their landscapers had ever done a retaining wall like that, and if the city approved it. City says that if a retaining wall is over 5' tall you need a structural engineer to come out. Neighbor said again it wasn't any of the city's business what he did to his yard, and for my husba
    via u/TenebrousSunshine
  • 11
    While they're filling up the backyard to bring theirs level to ours, the landscapers are dumping all the dirt, gravel, and sand in the street, blocking a little over half the road. Several of the neighbors who had trucks would just hop the curb, but other neighbors with smaller cars were mad. Before my husband could ask if they could put the dirt and stuff in their driveway instead of the road (like everyone else), neighbor went off on my husband to right off.
    via u/TenebrousSunshine
  • 12
    Well ok then. My husband let them continue working, and didn't say a word as they started constructing a 10' tall fence (which was against HOA regulations, fences couldn't be taller than 6').
    via u/TenebrousSunshine
  • 13
    Between them starting construction 6 days a week before 7am and them blocking the road, I guess someone had had enough. Next thing I know city officials are out there putting a big- I sign in the yard saying all construction was to be halted until further notice. It wasn't us, but my husband found out through the architectural committee that someone had complained about the noise and the road blockage to
    via u/TenebrousSunshine
  • 14
    the HOA, who came out to investigate, saw everything they had done, and then reported them to the city. They got a hefty fine for every tree stump the city official found. The structural engineer said their retaining wall was not sound and had to be redone, and it had to have regular inspections during its build.
    via u/TenebrousSunshine
  • 15
    The HOA also told them that not only did they have to take down their 10' tall fence, but as they did not get prior approval and because it was not an "approved design" the HOA also hit them with a hefty fine.
    via u/TenebrousSunshine
  • 16
    Initially Neighbor came after us for tattling but we told them it wasn't us, as nothing they did affected us in any way (our kids are early risers, so even starting before 7 didn't bother us). My husband then said he tried to warn them this would happen but Neighbor told him to off and mind his own business and he did.
    via u/TenebrousSunshine
  • 17
    Landscaping had started on Black Friday, was shut down for 3 weeks while I guess they got things sorted out with the city and HOA. Their backyard is still not finished.
    via u/TenebrousSunshine
  • 18
    Edit: I truly want to say, it wasn't us that called the HOA or city. We just let him be. But he I off a LOT of neighors. When cutting down those trees, he had chainsaws and the woodchippers going off by 6:45. And the bobcat being used by 7am six days a week. Other neighbors tried to ask him to put his dirt on his driveway instead of the street, he told them off to mind their own business too. And a few people went ballistic on him when their car slid a bit after the rains we had turned the remai
    via u/TenebrousSunshine
  • 19
    The school bus could also easily have complained to someone about it too, as it was a big ordeal for them. Also, there were other things he did to his front yard that we didn't warn him about either and he got dinged for, but I made this post mostly about him trying to go against the city. Although the changes he made to the driveway also got dinged by the city. And yes, from what I heard, the tree fines were painful.
    via u/TenebrousSunshine
  • 20
    Edit 2: no really, it wasn't us Although not going to lie, we almost ratted them out when they took out the beautiful oak tree in their front yard, put up a 20' flag pole, and put up a Chicago Bears flag (my husband can't stand that team). But we still kept quiet, and that flag pole was taken down about a week later. It again, it could have been the HOA or city noticing on their own, or a neighbor reporting them because the clanging it made all day and night was awful.
    via u/TenebrousSunshine
  • 21
    PREMIUM POKEBALL. Remember: when doing crimes do one at a time. e:cherry on this thread was finding out this was done in a HOA zone.
    via u/TenebrousSunshine
  • 22
    iqgoldmine ratting them out early would have been a mecry
    via u/TenebrousSunshine
  • 23
    twomz The tree bit me off. If you don't want large pine trees in your backyard, don't buy a house with large pine trees in the backyard. Those things take decades to get that big and tons of people would love to have them back there.
    via u/TenebrousSunshine
  • 24
    RealUltimate Papo then told my husband to mind his own business went off on my husband to right off Sometimes, people get what they deserve. A smart person will learn from this, and stop behaving like such a
    via u/TenebrousSunshine
  • 25
    bothunter Oof.. Neighbor cut down a bunch of trees without consulting an arborist, and then built a giant "retaining wall" out of cinderblocks? They're just begging for their house to slide down hill and probably take OP's house with it.
    via u/TenebrousSunshine
  • 26
    butterfly-garden I'll be honest. This is the first time I actually supported the actions of an HOA on a Reddit post. .
    via u/TenebrousSunshine
  • 27
    AnGabhaDubh It pays to be on, and stay on, good terms with your neighbors. Really, HOAs only exist in the first place because people can't be decent to one another without enforcement.
    via u/TenebrousSunshine
  • 28
    Waterflame The second trees were mentioned, I immediately knew that neighbour was in for a world of hurt moneywise. Tree law is no joke!!
    via u/TenebrousSunshine
  • 29
    schillerstone I fn hate people who buy house and immediately cut down all trees. Low moral character.
    via u/TenebrousSunshine
  • 30
    Erok2112 Those tree fines are going to be pretty stiff. Who knew but dont mess with the city arborists.
    via u/TenebrousSunshine

Want More? Follow Us and Add Us as a Preferred Source on Google.

Tags

hoa neighbors landscaping FAIL malicious compliance neighborhood homeowner neighborhood-drama bad neighbors neighborhood-stories terrible neighbors Bad Neighbor neighbor
Scroll Down For The Next Article