Neighbor Refuses to Ask for Permission to Do Electrical Work on Resident’s Property, Leading Resident to Get Cited by the City: ‘The neighbors are in trouble’

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Bar Mor Hazut • Senior Editor
Oct 15, 2026 11:15 AM EDT

What was the worst feud you ever had with a neighbor, and what did you do to solve it?

I have moved quite a lot in the 28 years I have been around, so I've had my fair share of neighbors, both good and bad. Obviously, every time I move, I have hopes that the people I'm going to see every day in my new home will be better than those I'm leaving behind, but so far, that has never been the case. No matter where I go, annoying or inconsiderate neighbors follow. The only thing that changes is my attitude and methods I thankfully learned so I could deal with it as easily as possible.

The worst neighborly dispute I had to deal with was when the neighbors who lived in an apartment below mine accused me of causing a leak in their pipes. According to them, every time I went into the bathroom or showered, their ceiling would leak, so every day they had to put buckets around their apartment and deal with water coming out of their walls.

Admittedly, it was an old building, and it was very possible they were correct, but there was nothing I could do about it other than allow them to bring a professional to inspect the issue. However, that was not enough for them, and they demanded I stop using the bathroom and shower until the problem was fixed, which, as I'm sure you can understand, was not something I was willing to do. It was when they decided to shut off the water to my apartment from the outside every time they saw water coming out of their ceiling that I knew I couldn't let them get away with their entitled behavior.

I will gladly tell you how I managed to solve this issue, but first you should scroll down to read the story of this poor resident and the fine they got from the city for something their neighbor is to blame for. It all started when their neighbor failed to ask for permission to get electrical work done on the resident's property, which led the electricity company to get in trouble with the city. The neighbor thought they could get away with the violations by pinning it on the resident who actually owns the property, but they were sorely mistaken.

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  • 01
    Neighbor doing work on resident's property.
    via Getty Images

    Neighbor doing work on resident's property.

    Stock photo unrelated.

  • 02
    So we got back from a week away to a notice from code enforcement that we need to clear and keep clear the back half of our driveway.
    via u/Swimming_Juice_9752
  • 03
    After a little investigation, we figured out that our neighbors (whose house sits on the property line) had some electrical work done.
    via u/Swimming_Juice_9752
  • 04
    Somehow, both the electric company and whoever grants permits with the city believe that we granted them an easement of our driveway, and they went
    via u/Swimming_Juice_9752
  • 05
    ahead & got the permit & and did the work awhile back. Now, the neighbors are in trouble with the electric inspector bc our wood pile and car block
    via u/Swimming_Juice_9752
  • 06
    the required abatement. So the neighbors called code enforcement to cite us for a violation. Which I suppose they hoped would get the electric
    via u/Swimming_Juice_9752
  • 07
    inspector off their backs. (The electric inspector said he's been on their case for weeks, but they just ignore him.) The electric inspector and the
    via u/Swimming_Juice_9752
  • 08
    Electricians working outside.
    via Getty Images

    Electricians working outside.

    Still frame for contextual reference only.

  • 09
    code enforcement officer were completely unaware of each others involvement...I had to give them each
    via u/Swimming_Juice_9752
  • 10
    At least, that's what I understand, but it all just seems so...idiotic? Like why would the neighbors lie about an easement, and how did so many people
    via u/Swimming_Juice_9752
  • 11
    believe that we'd give an easement of our driveway (that we actively use)? What happened to "believe, but verify?" What a dumb thing to use
    via u/Swimming_Juice_9752
  • 12
    resources.
    via u/Swimming_Juice_9752

  • How these neighbors could think they could get away with what they've done is beyond me, and hopefully, they will face consequences soon.

    Back to my difficult neighbors, after the fifth time they shut off my water without permission, I finally made a report against them. When a city representative arrived at the building to confront them, my “lovely” neighbors were not happy, and their loud complaints caused the entire building block to come out to the halls to see what the dispute was about.

    I came to find out that I was not the only resident who was having problems with these particular neighbors, so they had a lot of explaining to do when other people stepped forward and made their own accusations.

    They were eventually forced to move out by their landlord, and I was finally able to shower in peace.

  • 13
    _gadget_girl It wasn't a "dumb thing" in your neighbor's quest to get the work done as cheaply as possible.
    via u/_gadget_girl
  • 14
    _gadget_girl I expect the fallout will be rather glorious for your neighbor. Update me!
    via u/_gadget_girl
  • 15
    Warm-Fan1300 The fact that you had to introduce two departments from the same city while they were both involved in your driveway dispute is the most believable part of this whole story.
    via u/Warm-Fan1300
  • 16
    severe_thunderstorm There is an electric easement on my property, which I inherited. There is no easement in my deed or at the register of deeds clerk's office.
    via u/severe_thunderstorm
  • 17
    severe_thunderstorm I had to do a whole lot of digging to find out that in my area, the electric company keeps all the easement documents for electric easements.
    via u/severe_thunderstorm
  • 18
    severe_thunderstorm Additionally, due to some act of whatever laws, they can run power lines directly on property lines without both parties agreeing.
    via u/severe_thunderstorm
  • 19
    severe_thunderstorm My neighbor had their power poles put on the line when my father owned it, and now I have 15 feet from the power/property lines that we can't do much of anything with.
    via u/severe_thunderstorm
  • 20
    georgeofthejungle71 Sounds to me like you need the tallest fence code will let you put in
    via u/georgeofthejungle71
  • 21
    Dorzack When a house is built right on the property line there is often an easement or implied easement for maintenance and repairs.
    via u/Dorzack
  • 22
    Dorzack In addition there may be codes about how close to their house on property line you can put things like a woodpile.
    via u/Dorzack
  • 23
    MrSmiley_1 This is lawyer and land surveyor problem now. A land surveyor can do the research and find if there ever was an easement set up via a deed or plat.
    via u/MrSmiley_1
  • 24
    Engnerd1 Anything would need to be signed and recorded. I'd document all this in emails and make sure you have records of this.
    via u/Engnerd1
  • 25
    Engnerd1 I'm surprised the inspector didn't ask for more info.
    via u/Engnerd1

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Tags

neighbors drama neighborhood city mildly infuriating electricity property Bad Neighbor property line entitled people
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