Dealing with difficult neighbors can be frustrating, especially when their negligence causes damage to your property, and they refuse to pay their fair share.

So, what would you do if your neighbor ignored their financial responsibility, forcing you to cover thousands of dollars in expenses?

Would you let it go?

Or would you find a way to make them settle the debt?

In the following story, one homeowner deals with this very situation.

Here’s how it all unfolded.

Slumlord Neighbor’s Time To Pay What He Owes

The house directly next door to me is a rental property, which I had some issues with earlier this year.

The issues came from two massive spruce trees that were growing on the property line and were causing property damage to my property.

In my area, it is a law that in the case of trees growing on the property line, the costs of removal must be split evenly between neighbors.

Because the trees and roots were causing property damage, there was a significant case to be made for their removal.

Removing the trees was not cheap and involved bringing in cranes and multiple days of work due to their size and proximity to structures.

I approached the neighboring property owner about splitting the removal costs and was basically told, “I have no money.”

The landlord decided to sell the home but had some things to work out before he could.

His portion would have been about $4k.

At that point, we decided it would be more expensive to hire an arbor attorney, drag this through the courts, and then try to collect that money than just paying for the entire job ourselves.

Now, here is where the revenge comes in.

The tenant that lived there passed away, and the landlord decided to sell the house.

During the inspection process, they discovered some trees on their property that were hazardous and needed to be removed before the sale could go through.

It was uninsurable unless the hazard was mitigated.

He had no other choice but to pay what he owed.

In order to get to these trees, equipment would have to go through my property.

The lots are small, and because of the way this lot is situated, he would either have to demolish his other neighbor’s garage or use my property.

The owner approached me asking for permission, and my response was that I would only grant permission to use my property for $4k, the exact cost of what he owed me.

He tried claiming that it would jeopardize the sale of his property, and I simply replied, “I don’t care. This is the cost to use my property, take it, or leave it.”

The following week, he came with a check for $4k, and I granted written permission to use my property.

Wow! It took some time, but that worked out well.

Let’s see how Reddit readers relate to this story.

This person would’ve asked for more money.

Here’s someone else who would’ve charged more.

Great point.

A lien would’ve been the way to go.

It’s funny how the neighbor ended up in that situation and was forced to pay.

That’s karma at its finest.

If you liked that post, check this one about a guy who got revenge on his condo by making his own Christmas light rules.