I will have someone come fix it. No big deal. Ronald, you built a part of your house over my property. And then he said the thing that turned this from an annoyance into a straightup war. He straightened up, took a sip of his beer, and said, “Look, I checked the setbacks before we started. The airspace above a certain height is fair game. My contractor confirmed it. If you have a problem with that, take it up with the HOA.
I’m on the board, by the way. Or go hire a lawyer and fight mine. But I think you will find that you’re making a mountain out of a molehill here, buddy. He said, “Buddy, the way people say it when they actually mean something very different. ” Then he went back inside and slid the door shut. I sat there for a minute. Then I pulled out my phone and started taking pictures. Every angle, the post, the footing, the overhang, the crushed garden bed, the shadow, the balcony cast over my patio.
I took about 40 photos before the sun went down. And the next morning, I pulled my property survey out of the filing cabinet. I had kept a copy from when I bought the house, and I’d actually had a fresh survey done two years ago. When I was thinking about extending my fence, the property line thing was crystal clear. I walked outside with a tape measure and confirmed what I already knew. The support post was about 26 in inside my property line.
The edge of the balcony extended roughly 42 in past the boundary. This was not a gray area or something. This was not even a close call. This was Ronald’s structure sitting in my yard like it belonged there. I also looked up the HOA rules that night and our CCNRs have a whole section on structural modifications. Any exterior construction additions, fences, decks, anything visible from outside the home required HOA architectural review and approval before work can start. You have to submit plans, get board approval, and then you can build.
I searched through the HOA records online and there was no approved architectural review for Ronald’s balcony. None. He either skipped the process entirely or assumed that being on the board meant he didn’t have to follow the rules. Now, here’s where his dare came back to bite him. He told me to take it up with the HOA. So, that is exactly what I did. Monday morning, I emailed the HOA management company and requested a formal complaint process for an unauthorized structure.
