A South Carolina homeowner went to r/treelaw for advice after neighbors cleared out almost a full acre of their heavily wooded land.
The before-and-after photos are attached in the post, along with the official blueprints of the property showing the boundary lines. The property was purchased in Waterloo to build a home.
After seeing what happened, the homeowner had the surveyor come out and remark the property lines to confirm that the neighbors had trespassed and destroyed their land.
After trying to come to an amicable solution with the neighbors for over a month, the offenders threw their hands up and essentially said, "This is not our problem."
A real estate attorney said that there are no laws regarding neighbors trespassing and cutting down trees, which raised suspicious doubt considering utility companies typically compensate for any tree damage that occurs while working.
To make matters worse, the neighbors sold their property and the OP saw new markings on their land. It turns out the new owners purchased the lot under the impression that the marked land was theirs, according to the listing agent. They even had a driveway put in already.
"What do we do?" the OP, now in conflict with the original and new neighbors, asked the forum.
Unfortunately, property wars are not a rare occurrence, and not everyone has the environment at the forefront of their mind.
According to Nature, approximately 15 billion trees are cut down each year, and that's not including what is lost to fires.
Trees purify our air and naturally cool the planet. They also provide habitats for thousands of species. National Geographic reports that 80% of the earth's land animals and plants depend on forests to survive.
That being said, how you treat your yard is important. Rewilding or going natural will benefit pollinators, save money, and contribute to a cleaner future.
The post garnered a lot of advice and support on how to come out on top.
One Redditor said, "Start calling lawyers." This seemed to be a popular sentiment in the comments.
Another posted a link to find a registered consulting arborist.
"Keep calling lawyers, the trees are property that was damaged/stolen. SC has criminal laws about damage[d] trees as well," a third shared.
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