Parents remove fence and lets kids play on open land next door, new neighbors try to claim it as their own: 'They have absolutely no right to try keep my family out'

Author image for Isabella Penn
Isabella Penn
Sep 28, 2025 6:00 AM EDT

Disputes over land can get messy, especially when the property in question isn't technically anyone's to begin with. In this case, a family moved into a new build only to discover that the neighbor next door had been treating a large council-owned reserve as their personal backyard for years. The reserve was once meant to be a road, but the council never followed through, so the empty half-acre just sat there, fenced in by a previous owner of the neighbor's property.

The new family decided to make use of the open space. They tore down an old farm fence that sat entirely on their side of the boundary and let their kids play in the reserve. That didn't sit well with the new neighbors, who had assumed they were inheriting exclusive rights to the land. One even stormed across to yell at them before later apologizing.

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  • The truth is neither side owns the reserve. The council does. Which makes this more about perception than possession. The new family argues the land should be shared, while the neighbors want to keep the status quo. 

    The question isn’t really legal. It’s about who gets to enjoy the empty stretch of grass.

  • Cheezburger Image 10558336768
    via Steve Lieman

  • "AITAH for telling my neighbors that won’t be enjoying the perks that the previous owner of the had?"

    Background: My wife and I purchased a block of land about three years ago. The land was part of a small acreage that a developer purchased and divided into about 30 quarter-acre sized blocks.
    via Opposite-Mall8043
  • We finished construction, and our family moved into our new house a few months ago. We are one of the last to move in, with only a couple of houses still under construction in the street behind us.
    via Opposite-Mall8043
  • Our house is on the corner of the old acreage, on the existing street. There is a council road reserve directly next to us, and then the older existing houses start on the other side of the reserve.
    via Opposite-Mall8043
  • Imagine we are number 40, then the road reserve is between us and number 38 which is an older existing house.
    via Opposite-Mall8043
  • The council road reserve was a planned road that was never built. In the initial plans for our development, our block was meant to be a corner block.
    via Opposite-Mall8043
  • The road was scraped by the council and it looks like it will never be built, but council still owns the reserve.
    via Opposite-Mall8043
  • The reserve runs adjacent to our property and the two houses behind us, so it is a large space, approximately a half-acre.
    via Opposite-Mall8043
  • A previous owner of number 38, at least two or potentially three owners. ago (I know for a fact it wasn't the owner who just moved out who had been there 12 years) took the liberty of putting a fence across the front of the road reserve and essentially incorporating it into their property.
    via Opposite-Mall8043
  • The council is aware of this, but they aren't using the reserve, so they haven't taken any action.
    via Opposite-Mall8043
  • Also, there is no risk that the owners, previous or current, can claim legal ownership of the land through an adverse possession claim, as in my State, to claim adverse possession of council land is very difficult.
    via Opposite-Mall8043
  • You must have used and maintained the land exclusively for at least 30 years, among other requirements.
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  • Furthermore, the fact that the council has reserved it for a road trump's any individuals claim to the land.
    via Opposite-Mall8043
  • The issue: I discovered the neighbour on the other side of the reserve (number 38) was moving out, and after they left, I removed a section of the old post and wire farm fence (it was wholly on my property) and started letting my kids play in the reserve.
    via Opposite-Mall8043
  • It's a large space with plenty of room to run around, and there is an old tire swing on a tree.
    via Opposite-Mall8043
  • When the new owners of number 38 turned up, they were not at all happy to see my kids and I playing in the reserve.
    via Opposite-Mall8043
  • Obviously, they were under the impression that they were getting a 2-for-1 deal on their property.
    via Opposite-Mall8043
  • On one occasion, the wife came charging across the reserve to scream at me to stay out of their property.
    via Opposite-Mall8043
  • She did later apologise for that outburst. Obviously, their position is that all the previous owners of their property had exclusive access to the council reserve, and they expected to keep this status quo.
    via Opposite-Mall8043
  • Even questioning why I waited for the previous owner to leave before I started using the reserve.
    via Opposite-Mall8043
  • My position is that just because the previous owners of their property (two or three owners before them) put a fence across the front of the reserve when they had a farm next to them and nobody cared, does not entitle the owners of their property to exclusive access of the council reserve in perpetuity.
    via Opposite-Mall8043
  • When we moved the previous owner of 38 has some chickens ducks and his dogs enclosed on the front section of the reserve, right next to my block.
    via Opposite-Mall8043
  • Now I would never have the audacity to tell someone who was already using the reserve that I'm taking over but as far as I'm concerned as soon as the previous owner of their property packed up and left, the reserve was fair game.
    via Opposite-Mall8043
  • From my point of view, what happened before either of us lived next to the reserve is irrelevant, we have owned a block adjacent to the reserve longer, we've lived here longer, and we were using it before they moved in.
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  • So they have absolutely no right to try keep my family out. I am aware that neither of us have any legal right to the reserve, and I'm not looking to exclude these people from the area, I happy to share the space.
    via Opposite-Mall8043
  • I don't even want to use the entire reserve, just the section next to my property, there is a whole 2/3 of the area behind my property that I'm not interested in.
    via Opposite-Mall8043
  • It should be noted that because we are one of the last to move in the houses behind us already have Colorbond fences up along the boundary of the reserve and so those people don't have access to the reserve.
    via Opposite-Mall8043
  • I've decided I'm not putting a fence up for the full length of the boundary, just enough so I can secure my dog in the backyard but the side of the house will be open to the reserve similar to number 38's property.
    via Opposite-Mall8043
  • So, am I the for not sticking with the status quo and not allowing my new neighbour to have exclusive access to the council reserve?
    via Opposite-Mall8043
  • Edit: There's seems to be some confusion about the fence. The old neighbours (however long ago) put up a colorbond fence across the front of the reserve to enclose the reserve as part of their property.
    via Opposite-Mall8043
  • The fence I removed was the old post and wire (including barbed wire) farm fence that separated my block from the reserve.
    via Opposite-Mall8043
  • Cheezburger Image 10558337536
    via Jason Hawke 🇨🇦 For Unsplash+
  • The old farm fence was entirely on my property so owned wholly by me and I have the survey confirming this.
    via Opposite-Mall8043
  • Edit 2: I would prefer not getting the council involved or opening the space up to the general public as I don't like the idea of strangers being up the side of my house or teenagers fighting and screaming in the park on a Saturday night... but I am prepared to pull the front fence down as a last resort, should the neighbour try anything underhanded to deny us access.
    via Opposite-Mall8043
  • The way I look at it is the front fence is illegal and has been abandoned by whoever installed it.
    via Opposite-Mall8043

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property owner neighbors kids fence new homeowners neighborhood-drama parenting entitled people karma land dispute Bad Neighbor
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