Painted/Stained a Property Line Fence and Now Neighbor Wants it "Fixed"

[jthompson]

My question involves real estate located in the State of: South Carolina
I've recently purchased an investment property in a local subdivision and during the course of the rehabilitation of the property we had the perimeter privacy fence pressure washed and stained/sealed. I was unaware of who the fence belonged to as it was constructed well before my ownership. During the process of staining/ sealing the fence, an adjacent neighbor informed us that the left side of the fence was constructed on her property and she allowed the previous owner to "tie in". We only stained/ sealed the surface of the fence that faces our property, and we caused absolutely no detriment to the overall construction. If anything, we in fact preserved the fencing boards which were badly in need of treatment. The neighbor does not like the color of the stain, and she is informing us that she can see the color of the treament on the tops of the horizontal bars (2x4's) of the fence. If she allowed the previous neighbor to "tie-in" on her property, wouldn't maintenance of that fence section, that of the surface facing our property. also be construed? Does she have any recourse to have us "correct" the situation? Indeed, sanding, restaining, or outright replacing this section would be extremely costly.

[Mr. Knowitall]

If it's their fence on their property, you don't have the right to 'repair' it without their permission, nor do you have the right to change the color.

[jthompson]

The staining of the fence was done in error, we were unaware that the fence does sit a few inches inside the other homeowner's property line. Any idea what action they could take against us to rectify? Any idea on what course or method that 'correction' might take?

[Mr. Knowitall]

I expect that they will want you to undo the damage. The "repair" approach would be to restore the color. The "replace" approach would be to remove and replace the painted section, with the consent and approval of the fence owner.

[itisup2us]

If she allowed the previous neighbor to "tie-in" on her property, wouldn't maintenance of that fence section, that of the surface facing our property. also be construed?

Sounds like a good point. Would be worth a call to a local attorney to find out.

[Mr. Knowitall]

Tying in to somebody else's fence doesn't make it your fence. It's still theirs.