Neighbor refuses to remove his internet and cable from a next-door resident's utility pole, citing how the Wi-Fi signals will ‘mess’ with him if moved closer to his property: ‘[He] keeps resisting’

Author image for Lana DeGaetano
Lana DeGaetano • "Show me to me please."
Feb 21, 2026 5:00 AM EST

When a neighbor is taking something that's yours, they'll find every excuse in the book to keep it that way.

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  • Entitled neighbors come in many shapes and sizes. Some might try to steal water from your water heater, while others might try to chop down trees in your backyard. Whatever the case may be, it's unusual for you not to have an issue with a neighbor at some point in your life. They know exactly how to get under our skin. And, because they're neighbors, we have to deal with them until one of us moves.

  • An older gentleman looks out the window of his home.
    via Getty Images For Unsplash+

    An older gentleman looks out the window of his home.

    Image is representative only and does not depict the actual subjects of the story.

  • "Am I being unreasonable asking my neighbor to connect to the utility pole on his own property instead of mine?"

    I'm looking for honest outside opinions because I'm too close to the situation at this point.
    via Cute_Hawk_7853
  • There's an old (80+ years) wooden utility pole on my property that currently serves my neighbor's electric and cable.
    via Cute_Hawk_7853
  • There is also a (steel, 4 year old) utility pole at the street on his own property, which crosses his driveway, to get to this old pole, then crosses back to get to his roof.
    via Cute_Hawk_7853
  • I'm trying to modernize things on my property (trench and bring all utilities underground) and ultimately have the old pole removed.
    via Cute_Hawk_7853
  • The utility companies have indicated there are options to transfer his service so it would come from the pole on his property at the street instead of crossing my yard.
    via Cute_Hawk_7853
  • The issue is my neighbor keeps resisting. Every time one concern gets addressed, a new concern comes up.
    via Cute_Hawk_7853

  • What did we say about excuses? The book of them is about as long as this neighbor's will to lie. How do you reconcile with someone who refuses to compromise on anything? And, when you finally find holes in their excuse, they find another one to latch onto…

  • First it was one provider, then another provider, then future possibilities, then timing, and it just keeps shifting.
    via Cute_Hawk_7853
  • From my perspective, it feels like moving the goal posts and delay tactics. I've tried to be patient and respectful because I want to maintain a decent neighbor relationship, but it's frustrating because the pole soon will only exists to serve him, and there is a pole on his property at the street that could be used instead.
    via Cute_Hawk_7853
  • I'm not trying to make his service worse or cost him money. I told him I would pay for any work that is needed to make it happen and he would not incur any costs.
    via Cute_Hawk_7853
  • just want to be able to use my property without this utility pole sitting in the middle of it.
    via Cute_Hawk_7853
  • An image of birds sitting atop a utility pole.
    via Daniel Brzdęk for Unsplash

    An image of birds sitting atop a utility pole.

  • Am I being unreasonable here? Has anyone dealt with something similar? How did it turn out?
    via Cute_Hawk_7853
  • Yes, there's an easement with the power company. Genuinely looking for perspective. p.s. He complains about WiFi signals and that they are affecting him, and when we had the electric co out to measure for requirements he complained to them that they upgraded his meter to one that had WiFi in it and the signal was affecting him.
    via Cute_Hawk_7853

  • The resident who shares this story is in the right, period. They don't know how to reason with a freeloader because, well, they aren't one. Wi-Fi signals, really? Does this neighbor know that his router is in his house? A utility pole change won't do much, but he already knew that, didn't he?

  • I'm considering installing some WiFi that is pointed right at his house and is completely visible to him so he can see it and squirm...
    via Cute_Hawk_7853
  • Cheezburger Image 10608238080
    via Cute_Hawk_7853

  • So, what would you do if you were in this resident's situation?

    On the one hand, they can tear down this pole without asking; it's on their property, point blank. Having bad vibes with your neighbor, however… that's something you can't fix with a Band-Aid. This neighbor knows exactly what they're doing, and commenters agree with us.

    At the end of the day, there's no way to reason with someone who is making no sense. In this case, that's the neighbor. What we do know, however, is that at the end of the day, the utility pole is on the resident's property. They may do as they please…

  • barecipher You're not being unreasonable. The pole is on your property, serves only him, and you're offering to pay for the switch. That's more than fair. His shifting concerns sound like someone who just doesn't want change, not someone with actual problems. And the WiFi paranoia? That's a whole separate issue. You've been patient, you've offered solutions, and now you're just stuck waiting on someone who'll never say yes. Might be time to stop asking and start doing-with the utility company's
    via barecipher
  • OP Cute Hawk_7853 When we first started discussing this with the neighbor, he was like "yeah lets do this upgrade together and coordinate services" (we are upgrading from a 125A to 200A, and going underground) then his tune changed to he's not planning any updates right now, and then most recent to why we need to change anything. So the utility said it is possible, meaning it meets their requirements, then the guy says "well, I need to be able to drive big trucks up my driveway, like the clearan
    via Cute_Hawk_7853
  • ShimmelleDrop If the pole is on your property and you are covering the costs it is reasonable to push this through directly with the utility company instead of debating it forever.
    via ShimmelleDrop
  • OP Cute Hawk_7853 oh and when the comm tech and electric tech were over he was saying "he was talking to his lawyer..." what the heck. He told me his brother is a lawyer awhile back so I know it was his brother he was talking to, what a piece of work.
    via Cute_Hawk_7853
  • MentionGood 1633 Contact the utility company. He may need a new meter anyway...
    via MentionGood1633
  • chez2202 My only recommendation is to invest in a few beavers and half a dozen woodpeckers. Or maybe a few thousand termites. Or you could steal one of his nonexistent trucks and accidentally reverse into the wooden pole?
    via chez2202
  • OP Cute Hawk_7853 the electric company project manager actually suggested we start raising woodpeckers, but in all honesty if the pole came down, I fear the electric company would replace it with a steel pole.
    via Cute_Hawk_7853
  • NoLUTsGuy Yeah, this is just like Chuck McGill and his "electricity allergy." Ask him if he uses a cellphone. Those have far more radiation than WiFi.
    via NoLUTsGuy

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neighbors neighborhood-drama wifi Bad Neighbor weird entitled people
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