Shrubs/fence on the property boundary.
October 7, 2009 | 50,00 EUR | answered by Dr. Dr. Danjel-Philippe Newerla
Hello,
my neighbor planted bushes directly on the property line years ago.
Now the house has been sold.
The new owner has installed a 1.5 meter high metal fence for the purpose of keeping dogs, again directly on the property line. This metal fence now divides two approximately 1.5 meter high bushes in the middle, so that one half of the bushes is behind the fence on the neighbor's property, and the other half is in front of the fence on my property.
My questions:
1. Is this metal fence directly on the property line allowed? Is there no minimum distance to be maintained here?
2. Am I allowed to remove the part of the two bushes that is on my property?
3. I intend to plant a approximately 1.5 meter high Thuja hedge instead of the half of the bushes on my property. Do I need permission from the neighbor or do I need to maintain a minimum distance from the property line?
Kind regards from Baden-Württemberg.
Dear inquirer,
Thank you for your inquiry!
Taking into account your information, I would like to answer the questions you have posed as follows:
1. Is this metal fence directly on the property line permissible? Is there no minimum distance to be maintained here?
This question is governed by the Neighbor Law of Baden-Württemberg. For fences higher than 1.5 meters, there is no required boundary distance to be maintained. Therefore, the planned height of the boundary fence by the neighbor is just permissible.
2. Am I allowed to remove the part of the two shrubs that are on my property?
If a part of these shrubs is on your property, you are the owner of these shrubs and are allowed to remove them as the owner.
If shrubs from the neighbor's property are hanging over the property line onto your property, you are ultimately authorized to trim these shrubs yourself. However, before taking this step, you must give the neighbor a reasonable deadline, around one to two weeks, to remove the shrubs before you can trim the shrubs hanging over from their property.
3. I intend to plant a approximately 1.5-meter high Thuja hedge instead of the half of the shrubs on my property. Is the neighbor's approval or a minimum distance to the property line required for this?
According to the Neighbor Law of Baden-Württemberg, specifically § 12, for hedges up to 1.80 meters in height, a distance of 0.5 meters to the property line must be maintained. Therefore, your plan is generally permissible if this distance is adhered to.
I have attached the relevant provision of the Neighbor Law of Baden-Württemberg for better understanding:
[Section 12 - Hedges]
I hope that my explanations have helped you. You are welcome to contact me through the follow-up option on this platform or via my email address.
I would like to finally point out the following: The legal information provided by me is based solely on the facts provided by you. My response is only an initial legal assessment of the situation and cannot replace a comprehensive assessment of the situation. Adding or omitting relevant information may result in a completely different legal assessment.
I wish you a pleasant Wednesday afternoon!
Kind regards,
Dipl.-Jur. Danjel-Philippe Newerla, Attorney
Heilsbergerstr. 16
27580 Bremerhaven
kanzlei.newerla@web.de
Tel. 0471/3088132
Fax.0471/57774
