Property disputes often bring out the best and worst in neighbors.

It can be really annoying if you have a shared fence between your house and your next door neighbor’s house.

If you want to repair or replace that fence, you may need the neighbor to agree on the place and agree to split the cost.

This man was a homeowner who always took pride in keeping his property well-maintained.

When a shared fence collapsed, his neighbor tried to pressure him into replacing it, but he had another plan.

Read the full story below to find out more.

My Uncle and the Fence

Where I live, the fence put up by the builder and on the property line is called a builder’s fence.

To replace or repair the fence, you need both owners’ consent in writing.

My uncle’s house has two such fences on either side of the property.

The fences were old, and because of the size of the fences, they were cost prohibitive to replace.

This woman’s uncle had been trying to get the neighbor’s permission to repair the old, broken fence.

The year this happened was very rainy, and the fence collapsed in one section.

Now, my uncle takes pride in his property. He had been trying for years to get permission from his neighbour to repair it.

The day after the fence collapsed, the neighbour came over and screamed at my uncle that he had to replace the fence because it was an eyesore.

He asked the neighbor to cover half of the materials’ costs, but they refused.

My uncle was annoyed, but because the fence was now dangerous, he agreed.

Only if the neighbour covered half the materials, totaling about a grand.

The neighbour did not agree and said, “You’re going to replace the fence and use my contractor, or I’m going to call my cousin in the City (by-law compliance), and he’ll make you replace it.”

My uncle told him to call the City and slammed the door in his face.

A by-law official came by and gave him a notice to remove or replace the fence.

Of course, a by-law official showed up a few days later.

He gave my uncle a notice that he had to replace or remove the fence in a month or be fined.

After carefully questioning the official, he was told that it is only required to have a fence around your property if you have a pool.

So, the day before reinspection, my uncle and cousins took it down.

He told his neighbor the replacement was not his problem.

The neighbour freaked out and screamed at my uncle that he had to replace it because he had a pool.

My uncle looked him dead in the eye and said:

“Not my problem. I’m in full compliance with the City, just like you wanted.”

I found out because I went over with my mom to hang out.

We were greeted with the sight of the neighbour trying to pour concrete footings in the rain.

Now the neighbor has to pay a new fence himself.

Let’s read the responses of other people on Reddit to this story.

This person loves the happy ending.

This user makes a valid point.

Short and straightforward.

Finally, this person is calling out the neighbor.

When you don’t compromise, you usually end up losing more.

If you liked that post, check out this post about a woman who tracked down a contractor who tried to vanish without a trace.