Encroachment of Land and How This Can be Resolved

When a building or other permanent structure on one block of land extends beyond the boundary onto the neighbouring land it is said to constitute an encroachment on the neighbour’s land.

You might be surprised how often this happens and how long an encroachment can exist before it is discovered.

You won’t be surprised to hear that encroachments can cause major problems for land owners on both sides of the boundary.

You should be mindful of the issue when you are looking to buy property and conduct a survey to determine exactly where the boundary is if there is any question of an encroachment.

If you already own land and find that you and your neighbour have an encroachment problem, then there are a number of different ways it can be resolved.

You may be surprised to find, however, that, in some circumstances, a court will actually order that the part of a person’s land onto which a neighbour’s building encroaches must be transferred to the offending neighbour, albeit subject to the payment by the offending neighbour of fair compensation for the land.

Such an order will never be made if it can be shown that the encroachment was deliberate and whether it was deliberate or not, in some cases orders are made for the removal of the encroachment.

Encroachment issues are usually resolved by agreement, without the need to seek a court order, but in any event, it is recommended you seek legal advice to ensure that the matter is fully and finally resolved.

If you have any queries about this or any other aspect of encroachment of land then please contact us on 07 5443 9988 or[email protected].

Argon Law is a Sunshine Coast law firm based in Maroochydore.  We are commercial lawyers and property lawyers and are eager to assist you in any way we can.