Legal Definitions - encroachment

An encroachment is an unauthorized intrusion onto a neighboring property, typically involving a physical structure or plant that extends above or below the land's surface. This constitutes an infringement of another's property rights by interfering with or intruding upon their land.

Encroachment refers to a situation where a physical structure or object from one property extends onto or into a neighboring property without authorization.

It is an unauthorized intrusion by a physical element, whether above or below the ground, onto someone else's land or into their airspace.

• Example 1: Misplaced Fence

  A homeowner decides to replace an old fence along their property line. After the new fence is installed, their neighbor discovers through a survey that a section of the fence actually sits six inches onto their property, rather than precisely on the boundary line.

  This illustrates an encroachment because the new fence, a physical structure, has intruded onto the neighbor's land without their permission, even if the placement was accidental.

• Example 2: Underground Utility Line

  A developer installs a new water main for a residential subdivision. Due to an error in the plans, a portion of the underground pipe inadvertently crosses several feet beneath the surface of an adjacent, undeveloped private lot that belongs to a different owner.

  This is an encroachment because the water pipe, a physical object, has extended below the surface of the neighboring property without the owner's consent, constituting an unauthorized intrusion.

• Example 3: Overhanging Balcony

  A multi-story apartment building is constructed with balconies. One of the balconies on an upper floor extends slightly beyond the property line, hanging directly over a small portion of the adjacent commercial building's roof.

  This demonstrates an encroachment because the balcony, a physical part of the apartment building, intrudes into the airspace above the neighboring commercial property without authorization.