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Neighbor Fence Etiquette In MN?

Christina Vescio
Posted Feb 26 2021, 11:26

Hello, 

new poster here. I seem to be getting mixed answered regarding this topic.

If I pay for my privacy fence and it is 1 foot inside my property from a chain link fence that divides our neighbors backyards, can I have the finished side facing inside my backyard? 

Here is why we want a privacy fence inside the chain link fence:

-our backyard neighbors house is vacant it gets rented and nobody seems to stay there and that yard is never kept up with we can manage the care of our fence.

-our neighbors to the right have a privacy fence so we are leaving that side alone.

-our neighbors to our left won't respect our wishes and always feed our dogs (they think behind our backs but we installed cameras.) They also enter our yard to put things in our yard like toys they bought for our dogs or to talk to our children when we aren't outside. They always call our dogs to the fence and encourage them to jump the fence and bring them back to our yard and actually enter without permission. We've told them not to even touch or encourage our dogs but for some reason they refuse to respect our wishes and we only have insurance on them inside our property lines.

-we want our property line to be very clear so that instead of building on the shared property line risking the neighbors having a say so in the boundary we will have our full on privacy. 

-The reason we want our fence inside the already chain gate is so that we have full responsibility for up keep and know it gets done correctly.

Why we want the finished side on the inside:

We want the finished side on the inside so our boys won't climb on our fence and neither will our dogs it will also be harder for our dogs to chew the finished side. And due to the neighbors to our left the space between our house is separated by the chain link fence the rest of our property and then their garage and their drive way so appearance won't matter in their case. The backyard neighbors as mentioned before no one lives there or up keeps the property. 

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Matt Mayotte
  • Flipper
  • Minneapolis, Minnesota
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Matt Mayotte
  • Flipper
  • Minneapolis, Minnesota
Replied Feb 26 2021, 11:47

I have never heard of a stipulation that says what side the finished side has to be on.  Each city is different though, so check with the building department of your city.  They will have height and post depth requirements also that you want to make sure you follow.  If your neighbors are renters they likely won't say anything or know about it anyway, but its always best to make sure you are following all of the rules.

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James Hamling#3 Real Estate News & Current Events Contributor
  • Real Estate Broker
  • Twin Cities, MN
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James Hamling#3 Real Estate News & Current Events Contributor
  • Real Estate Broker
  • Twin Cities, MN
Replied Feb 26 2021, 12:10

@Christina Vescio it sounds like a frustrating situation, as a dog-person I would be furious if someone was doing that with my dogs. 

In MN there is a special ordinance when it comes to fences saying that you can encroach on easement too the lot line, I suggest doing that and putting it at your side of the lot line. It is still your property with 100% property rights and the neighbors have 0 right to mess with the fence no different than if you put it 10' inside your lot line. 

Now if there is any disagreement on where the lot lines are, just have a survey done. I know it sucks to have to pay it but odd's are there is existing lot markers burred in the ground and it wont be too expensive and it ends any possible disputes once and for all. 

As for the build of the fence, simply have it boxed in, that is where they put finished slats on both sides. Generally speaking yes, you could leave the open side facing your neighbors and be fine but it's a grey area of the law. The neighbors could say it's an eyesore and there in negatively impacts their home value, and demand compensation or correction. This rarely happens but you already have issues so just head it off at the pass and do it right from the get-go. 

Given the current standing of lumber prices an alternative is to install a vinyl fence, that's finished on both sides and there is some good quality ones out there just make sure you don't go with cheapest as those can and will blow over and dogs can and have ran straight through those panels before. Make sure you put posts inside the sleeve. 

Hope that helps. 

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