Neighbor Thinks Landscaping Is “Shared”
 

Hey folks. We need some advice on a neighbor issue in Chitty Chatty. We purchased a corner lot Patio Villa in September and came down early in October to get it set up. Barb & I came home for the holidays & we let our daughter & grandkids come down to our Patio Villa for Christmas as we can’t celebrate together & Meagan is going to take the kids to Sarasota next week to their Dad.
Well our new next door neighbor who’s really sweet, came over to our Villa today & told the kids that she hoped we wouldn’t be mad but she had landscaping done in the “SHARED” flower bed between our houses. She had the landscaper install rock & edging in our original landscaping along the house, garage and driveway by the garage door.
We are currently talking to an established landscaper about doing a large job for us & we have plans for that side of the house and will submit plans to the ARC for approval prior to work commencing. I looked at the Deed restrictions & the only mention of mutual use of the area between our homes is to ensure access for maintenance reasons. I’m not real sure how to proceed without opening a can of worms for others who may have had landscaping done without ARC approval.
Any ideas besides reporting it?
We’ll be back the 27th & planning to talk to our neighbor to see if she understands & that we plan to do something nice on her view of that side of our house. I hope she amenable to it. I just don’t want her to think that this area is shared.

Any suggestions would be appreciated.
Thanks!!

I think that she might be allowed to do that in the "shared" space. Understand your concerns about not opening a can of worms but I think you'll have to ask ARC and get the right answer.

The property is not shared. The survey drawing of your home should show the boundary lines.
The sharing is much like an easement, allows access but does not mingle ownership.

Unless the person wanted to pay a share of the property taxes, then we might discuss............

I'm on a corner villa lot. There are rules and regulations on this, talk to ARC and learn them. If you're right, educate your neighbor nicely and if you're wrong, let it go.

My understanding is that the legal property line is right down the middle.

However, landscaping and maintenance "behind the fence" is mine since it's all "in my backyard" although my neighbor has access for maintenance to his house.
Landscaping and maintenance "in front of the fence" belongs to my neighbor to maintain.

Fortunately, I was here first and my neighbor liked my landscaping quite a bit and put in some that was a seamless continuation with some variation. Sweet talk your neighbor into that.

If this helps-- (I'm in a new patio villa, end unit also) That flower bed by the electric meter and side of your home that has no windows is the neighbors planter area. You have a right of way...if you needed to pressure wash that side but that planting area facing that neighbors screened porch is on them to keep up.

As shown the red area is the neighbors grass and planting.

Unless The Villages has created a new way to define the use of property between the houses, there is no shared landscaping. Read the deed restriction document and explain it to your neighbor, or go with her to ARC and have them explain it to her. It doesn't matter what your neighbor thinks. I would take care of this as soon as possible.

Interesting. So the neighbor in question only owns her patio and the plants along the patio she can't change because they belong to the house abutting?

Correct. As described in the OP, your neighbor has responsibility and "right of use" for the area that she landscaped, right up to the side of your house and along the driveway to the street. (shown by the red lines in the picture).

It is important to understand that patio and courtyard villas are not like regular houses. The property lines do not define what you can do.

It depends on what the deed restrictions say, but it is common for part of the property that you own to have an easement that allows your next door neighbor to control the landscaping on part of your property. But, it is not a shared responsibility.

Buyer beware !!! read your deed restrictions and easements before buying, those properties breed neighbor problems, something i would not personally own, JMHO.
Sorry i know that doesn't help.

Makes sense. So it could be the poster's neighbor is doing nothing wrong.

Had a similar situation in which the neighbor on the windowless side of our villa decided to do landscape and added stones all the way up to our wall. I called ARC and they told me that they cannot extend their stone that far and that they cannot have plantings within 18 inches of the wall. I let him know that it was against the restrictions to have done that but I'm not about to press the issue other than letting him know. However I have a downspout splash guard that was there before he landscaped and since it washes away his stones he keeps wedging it so that the water runs back agains my unit. It's a rental unit so I don't get to see him doing this but I'll soon be making a more permanent guard to keep the water away from my foundation. If people would just read their restrictions and talk with the ARC before doing anything these problems would not arise.

There is no shared space. You can find your property line steel pin with a metal detector if it was not destroyed during construction. It is usually just beside or behind your sprinkler head on the corner of your lot. There are easements between homes but they are for utilities. If you live in Sumter then the County has an easement 13 and 1/2 feet from the street. And, if you go to Community Standards and try to get approval to plant trees or anything they will tell you that. Also they will tell you if you ask enough that about 95% of homes in TV are not in compliance. You cannot build or put anything within three feet of your neighbors property. If you do and they complain you will need to remove.

This is not true for courtyard villas and some other house types. The deed restrictions for many of the small houses establish easements that allow your next door neighbor to control the landscaping on part of your property. Some of these easements extend to almost up to your neighbor's exterior house wall. And, I don't think there is a rule that says you cannot place landscaping within 3 feet of your neighbor's property line for any house. You need to read the deed restriction document very carefully. I had to read mine about 7 times before I could fully comprehend what it allows and requires.

Thanks for the responses folks. I appreciate the help. I have read the deed very carefully and the only mention of the area between the houses is for maintaining the adjacent structure & yard maintenance, which I would interpret as mowing, edging, etc. No mention of enhancements or landscaping. I’m going to give our Villages Realtor a call & get their opinion before I talk with ARC. We’re not mad at our neighbor, we just don’t want to end up in a dispute when we do our landscaping project.
Thanks again!

I called community standards 751-3912.District 12, patio villa, you own that side but your neighbor is responsible for maintaining "their" side (even tho you own it) and can plant what they want with ARC approval, of course. Do give them a call to clear up any confusion.

So if a sinkhole develops on "your" property which the neighbor is responsible to maintain, who fixes it? The person who owns it or the person who is responsible for maintenance? Whose sprinkler heads are in the area? If the neighbor is responsible for maintenance does that mean the decision on how often and how much to sprinkle is his thus the equipment is tied to his water lines? I would think so but I'm curious.

Great questions, post what community standards says, very interesting.

If there is an easement area that you control, the sprinklers will be connected to your water system and you decide when and how much to water that area, even though the property is owned by your neighbor.

Landscaping IS yard maintenance. If they are responsible for yard maintenance, then they are the ones who get to decide (with ARC's approval) what goes in the yard and what doesn't go in the yard.

If you are the responsible party, then you are the ones who get to pick (with ARC's approval).

You should have had the property surveyed, or received a copy of an existing survey map, so you know EXACTLY what is yours to change and what is not yours to change (with ARC approval).


When I moved in, my neighbor pointed out some shrubs in the back yard, right on our property line. Part of the shrubs were on her side, part were on mine. She told me she planted them years ago, because that spot was damaged by the shade tree roots that grew there. The shrubs are contained in old tires that you can't see because of the shrub foliage (it's a very clever setup).

I told her I absolutely love them, it's a really nice way to show the property line at the back corner of our properties, and I thanked her for doing it and promised I'd make sure it was weeded when she was out of state for a few months every year.

But if I didn't like them, I would have been free to remove them and pretty it up however I preferred - on MY side of the property line.

That’s what it’s looking like folks. I talked to our Realtor & she’s pretty sure that it’s common practice for those with patios facing that wall. The only issue now is that she came all the way out past the corner of the garage. I don’t think it’s going to be a problem as we were planning on doing a raised block bed there with a weeping bottle brush. She’ll probably like that.

Hi,

Welcome to The Villages! I hope you and your neighbor are able to work together. Good neighbors are like trees in Florida (worth millions!):
Link to Deed Restrictions (Find your district and then your villa name or UNIT number> The unit # of your home is listed on your golf ID as UL #)
VCDD Deed Compliance - Sumter County

On their website I could only find courtyard property line images, but the terms they use are the same as patio villas.
https://www.districtgov.org/departme.../CourtYard.pdf

Hope you find this helpful!

Thanks!!!

In my district in CYV,s nothing can come within foot of my house wall. That 1 foot rock landscaping beside my house is for drainage not for plants cause too close to my house wall which requires 1 foot clearance same in that area off front porch. I can’t have nothing within 1 foot of my neighbor’s house even though it technically his property, but I maintain it. There also 1 foot clearance on my driveway so I can get in and out of my vehicle. Some let there bushes/shrubs grow beyond driveways in front of there houses which is violation.

Again this depends on district and how property lines and houses are built (2 bedroom vs 3 bedroom) I have no clue or interest how Patio villa’s are set up which looks like just as screwed up as CYV’s, bottom line read restrictions for district if there any questions call ☎️.

IMO it takes lawyers mentality to understand deed restrictions due to many different rules based on village, lot number, and district.:faint:

If SECO is your electric company the bush in front of the meter is a no no. Also I would not have much faith in what a Villages sales person says.

There is no reason to think that. I have listened to a lot of stuff on this forum over the years and only people who are anti-developer say things like that. The Villages Sales staff do NOT have to enlarge or exaggerate or fib in any way to get sales. People are lined up to move here. Why would you lie if the truth would serve you?

I'm sure a lot of people would be horrified if they ever looked or had to go over to the neighbors side of a courtyard villa. When I visit some I can't believe the plantings, terraces, fountains, etc, against neighbors homes. I've even seen a retaining wall knee high with plantings in it.

The house is sold already so that's a moot point. " I talked to our Realtor & she’s pretty sure that it’s common practice for those with patios facing that wall. " Practice is not the same as what's in the deed and survey. I'm neither pro or anti developer and will post my opinion when I want to.

From what I understand their side is theirs your side is yours, line is usually down the middle. Your survey will tell you where yours ends. You are allowed on their property even if the flower bed is there, to wash your house or do maintenance etc. otherwise they can do what they want with their side and you can do what you want with your side (as long as ARC approves). These properties do not have common elements like a condominium, to be decided jointly.

We are in an end unit patio villa in the new area as well and that’s absolutely correct what you’re saying. They maintain the area to the side of your home, you have a right of way when needed to clean or spray for bugs...looks like we both have the same model home with the side birdcage!

Why not talk to your neighbor?

Shared access is NOT shared ownership. I would be mad as h*ll and make them remove the landscaping.

Note to self: Don’t buy a patio villa������

We were told when we bought our villa that the area off of our side patio but against the neighbors blank wall is our responsibility. We must maintain the shrubs, etc. Likewise that sane area on the other side of our home is our neighbor’s responsibility.

OP before we did anything to our PV we spoke to both neighbors. Our bigger problem was the crazy lady (neighbors gave title) few door down.

On her own she chose to have work done on other people’s property and maintenance, to her liking. Always on home that were snowbirds, couple times on full timers.

Our lawn guy who mowed, weeded, and trimmed five homes in a row, sent pictures of all our bushes had been cut down to less than a foot, mulch put over rocks, and our fence had been power washed so hard, some boards fell down, as well as siding issues.

Yep she hired people to work on other homes, then had them send bill to owner. Our neighbor took her to court, won, but she didn’t get it. We sold same year, as did the other 4 homes. You may not be able to pick your neighbors, but you can move away from them

My opinion-
I do not know you or the neighbor. We had a neighbor who hired a landscaper and they had intruded n to my property. I spoke to the neighbor and he agreed to move it.
The people he hired, refused. Swore at me etc. He is the expert etc etc etc. I called the villages. The person they sent was great. He told the landscaper he was in violation.
He told my neighbor not to pay the landscaper until it passed inspection. The people my neighbor hired did not file a plan as they are supposed to. My neighbor told me
that that landscaper went to jail for something or other.

You are far better off letting someone other than you handle this. Not doing anything
is a choice you can make. The issue will not go away by itself. Common ground?
I do not know what that means. You can easily get a copy of the survey and it will show where your property line is. Common ground? It belongs to someone. You, the neighbor, the Villages?

Eventually you don’t live in CYV or PV?

Call Community Standards 352 751-3912 i’ll come out and check it out for you.
 

Call Community Standards 352 751-3912 i’ll come out and check it out for you.

Bingo!

I would still contact ARC. My new neighbor inquired about me being responsible for trimming bushes on the garage side of my villa, his patio area. Showed the deed restriction which clearly states he is responsible for maintaining 3 feet easement from rear property line to street. I cannot plant anything on that side since I do not maintain.
That said your neighbors can not attach anything decorative to your home And need to keep enough area clear for vendors and you to walk through. Bushes should not ever touch your home or block equipment. I also have a corner lot.