Expert: Dick Dennis - 11/18/2009

Question
When my house was built the underground gas tank was installed on the wrong side of the property line but not noticed until the plot next door was sold and a house was built.  The new neighbors put up a fence on their side of the propane tank and never said anything to me in the past 4 years.  Recently they have decided to sell and approached me about buying the small strip of land.  We got acceptance from the HOA, preliminary approval from the board, a quote from the surveyor to do a recombination and submit to the board for formal approval.  They now have reservations because the mortgage company wants a new application/appraisal and what sounds like a new mortgage potentially and now they just want me to dig up the tank (its big) and relocate it.  The amount of land in question is ~1400 sq.ft. and by my estimate their plot would still be larger than mine.  All plots in the neighborhood seem to have the same value.  Their land plot has two recent appraisals with the land estimated at $40k on one, $50k on the other.  I offered them $2.85/sq. ft. based on this.  Since they don't want to go through the headache with their mortgage company, how can this recombination be included with their offer to there future seller - I assume ~$4000 would be useful for helping them with closing cost. I am looking for options and the correct terminology to present this to them as they are two older ladies and one has apparently heard bad stories about land disputes in the past... I'm not disputing it, I want to buy it.

Answer
I would be foolish to try to answer your question, Rob, without taking a physical inspection. To give you a reply via the Internet without looking at the land and documents involved is just not kosher. I recommend you consult with a local real estate attorney to resolve your problem. I do wish you well.

Dick Dennis