I came back on a Sunday afternoon. I walked through the front door, dropped my bag, let the dog out into the backyard, and that’s when I saw it. There was a brand new wooden balcony extending off the second story of Ronald’s house. Not just any balcony. This thing was massive. It stuck out probably 8 ft from the back of his house, and a solid good chunk of it, I’m talking at least 3 and 1/2 ft, was hanging directly over my yard.
I could even see it casting a shadow over my patio furniture. One of the two support posts was planted on my side of the fence right next to it where I had a raised garden bed that I’d spent an entire weekend building last spring. The garden bed was smashed, dirt everywhere. My plants were just gone. I stood there staring at it for a good 30 seconds. The dog was sniffing around the post like it was a fire hydrant.
I looked up at the balcony, then down at the post, and then back up. I actually said out loud to nobody, “No way.” I walked over to the fence. I looked at Ronald’s yard. Nobody home. or at least nobody outside. The balcony had nice wood railing, what looked like a composite decking, string lights already hung up. This was not some rushed weekend project. This had been professionally built while I was gone. Somebody had hired a crew, poured concrete footing inside my property, set a post, and built a structure that literally hung over my backyard, and nobody thought to mention it.
That evening, I was sitting on my patio trying to process what had happened here when Ronald came outside onto the balcony. He was holding a beer and he looked down at me with this big grin. Hey man, welcome back. What do you think? I looked at him. What do I think about what the deck just got finished Thursday? Turned out great, right? I pointed at the support post. Ronald, that post is in my yard. He leaned over the railing.
Oh yeah, the contractor said it was the only way to get the right load bearing for the span. Don’t worry about it. It’s just a post. It’s a post in my yard on my property. He waved his hand. Come on, man. It’s like 3 ft. You won’t even notice it after a while. Well, I’m noticing it right now. And you crushed my garden bed. He made a face like I told him that I was upset about a dandelion.
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.
