It’s always a good idea to hire a land surveyor before building a fence around your property. That way you can make sure you know exactly where the property line is.

In this story, one homeowner did that exact thing for that exact reason. The problem is that his neighbor doesn’t care what the surveyor says, and neither do the police!

It’s pretty crazy, but the police seem to be siding with the neighbor who is trying to claim this homeowner’s land as her own.

Keep reading for all the details.

Neighbor trespassing/property encroachment

Location Oregon

I have a neighbor who has been attempting to encroach on my property and has been getting quite aggressive.

I had a retaining wall installed 20 years ago along with planting some arborvitae trees. The retaining wall was starting to lean so I decided to have it replaced.

I hired a surveyor to make sure it was going to be placed correctly along the property line.

Yikes! The neighbor really is being aggressive!

I payed $400 dollars to have the retaining wall taken down and my neighbor immediately shoveled gravel into the area where the retaining wall was and claimed it as their property.

I called the police and they came out and said that I still had the right to install a new wall and suggested that I add a fence on top as the neighbor has been reaching over the property line and trimming the arborvitae trees all the way back to the trunk permanently damaging them.

I asked if I could press charges but was told no because she is an older woman they will not charge her with trespassing.

He had to contact the police again.

A few weeks pass by as I am waiting for the contractor to be available to build the new retaining wall and fence.

The day comes and when they attempt to start construction my neighbor comes out and blocks them from continuing.

I called the police again and they come out. They refused to speak with me first and went to talk to my neighbor and told me I had to stand far away so they could speak privately.

The police made a crazy decision!

From what I could hear my neighbor started claiming that I have attacked her and she felt threatened.

The police then told me that the 2ft of property where I was trying to build was no longer mine and the my neighbor could do what ever she wants with it.

The officer refused to look at the survey documents or the survey marks and told me I would be cited for trespassing if I entered the area (that I own).

He made another phone call.

I called and asked to speak with the sergeant after the incident.

The sergeant told me that because the land is contested by my neighbor I can’t build anything on it but my neighbor can.

When I questioned how that was equal he began to yell at me over the phone and to stop talking.

I pressed the issue and he eventually hung up on me when I asked if this was an issue as I am a person of color.

But it wasn’t over.

He then called me back an hour a later and told me he reviewed body cam footage and said that I was making false accusations of bias.

I restated that I wanted to be treated equally.

And he began to yell again and eventually hung up on me again.

OP needs a lawyer.

I have given both my neighbor and a the police multiple copies of the survey.

My neighbor just says she doesn’t agree but refuses to get her own survey and the police say they don’t know how to read land surveys.

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The police have told me I need to hire a lawyer if I want my property back and in the meantime my neighbor can continue to trespass on my property and build whatever she wants until then but I am to stay off of it or I will be cited for trespassing.

I definitely feel like a lawyer should be involved at this point but would like any tips or information on how to approach this situation.

The police’s decision doesn’t make sense. Why does the neighbor have the authority to use OP’s land just because she claims it’s hers when the survey clearly says otherwise?

Let’s see if Reddit has some advice.

Here’s a vote for a lawyer.

Here’s another suggestion.

This person says to keep building.

Here’s another idea.

If the police can’t read a land survey, they are clearly not in the position to decide who should get to use the land. It’s ridiculous that the neighbor would have the right to use the land but not the person who actually owns it!

This should be an easy case for a lawyer.