Our house is still fairly new and while we are living in it now there is still a lot that needs to get finished off. We’re in a new estate and so there is a lot of building still going on around us, none more important for us than the next door neighbor who has just put up their house frame and so their build is progressing nicely...
Of course, I want to have good relations with my neighbors and so when we first moved in I was mowing their spare block for them Pro Bono to keep the snakes down and make sure the place still looked nice. While my wife and I wanted a fence on that side so that we could close off our yard for our kids to play in, we agreed to wait and allow them to put some retaining wall on the boundary to then put a fence on top of it and let them maximize the space of their block.
In hindsight that was probably a mistake for us. Here we are many months later after the builders next door stalled and delayed and now they’ve finally put the retaining wall in, but in some parts it doesn’t come up to the natural ground level. That sucks, but now it’s time to finally get the fence up and our neighbor wants to do the job himself...
He seems like a decent guy and is obviously “Handy” on the tools, but I have some trust issues. My wife wants it done yesterday, but I’m more concerned about the unspecified costs and the quality of the job. The last thing I want is for them to sell up 12 months later and then have to deal with a shoddy fence with a new neighbor that ends up seeing me pay for the job twice.
I am a big believer in showing goodwill and I know I need to take this job on faith to some extent. Who wants to get off on the wrong foot and have angst with a neighbour for 15 years over something relatively minor? I know most people don’t think like me though and I often come off 2nd best in situations like this. I’m kind of sick of that, but what can you do?
The guy who's planning to live there might do a better job of it than the guy who's paid to put it up, and then never think about it again.
That is a very good point...
It’s a tricky situation. You are going to be living next door to them for I’m assuming quite a while. Be diplomatic as much as possible. Maybe even offer to help. That might get the project done a little quicker.
Good advice. I think he did originally want to do the job together but I am sadly useless on the tools.
When I have helpers on jobs. I don’t expect or let them use tools. There are other needs from them. An extra set of hands and eyes sometimes is just as good.
Good idea... Our father in law did the critical first layer on our retaining wall and showed us how to do it, so that we could attempt it in a less important section. We did the digging, and hauling of gravel/bricks/earth.
But just being there, he kept checking to see if it was what we wanted or needed so that there were no misunderstandings.
That's a tough situation to be in. We just had a new fence put up, but we ended up paying for the whole thing ourselves. I don't think our neighbor even offered to pay for part of it. It's just something you have to suck up over here I guess.
Ah shit, that is tricky. Nothing worse than a well intentioned but bad job... And for something that important as well. I'm the same as you, I'd have no idea how to steer them in the direction of getting it properly done.
Sounds like the tiype of situations I usually find myself in. Not sure what to tell you. I would take the advice of Silverd and offer to be an extra set of hands. That will keep your eyes on the work.
I feel you should always remember them about the project because if no one talks about it again, it is possible for everyone to forget it and it may continue to be like that for a long time
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