To not acquiesce to neighbour's request?

[FelicityMorange]

We spent this morning installing a new fence in our front garden. After 4 hours of back-breaking labour, I was sweeping up when our neighbour comes out and says she's not happy because we've got the 'nicer' side of the fence facing our way and not hers. She actually wanted us to turn each panel round so the flat side was facing her garden.

I thought she was joking at first so sort of laughed it off but no, she was being serious. I just muttered something about 'speaking to my husband' and went indoors.

Have I made a misstep in neighbourly etiquette or something?!

But the point is that you can't put the fence posts inside next door's boundary, that counts as trespass, so you'd have to move the fence forwards onto your land if the posts are facing towards the neighbour's garden.

Exactly the point I made earlier - it's not a courtesy to give your neighbour the smooth side, it's to protect the use of your own land and keep the boundary lines stable over time.

So many people are getting fizzed over the fact that they pay for it blah, blah, blah.... It's not about that! If it's a lift-in panel type fence then it doesn't matter, but if it's nailed to fence posts then you will give your neighbour some of your land. It won't matter in a large garden, but if your garden is small you will lose some space. As I also said earlier - what happens if your neighbour incorporates those inches into their garden and later wants to extend? You gave them away.

Is nobody reading what the OP's said or have I misunderstood?

From her last post it would seem that there are concrete fence posts and the boards (which look the same both sides) have been slotted in. The neighbour is objecting because the fence slats are facing towards her house rather than away. There is no good side or bad side here, just slats facing one way or the other. The OP's side would look smoother or flatter from the house, and the neighbours would look smoother or flatter from the end of her garden. I don't think the OP has done anything wrong here based on what she last posted. Or maybe I misunderstood?

our fence posts are on our land, not our neighbours and about an inch in from the boundary, so as I paid for the fence and as we maintain it.....I get the nice side!

Wtf?!?! Your fence, you choose which side faces your garden. I have never heard so much fucking nonsense in my life!! Etiquette MY ARSE.😂

She can put her own fence up.

Jaunty
It is 2 sided. Op has the good side. This is the exact same fencing as the one my neighbours used.

As long as you’ve not encroached into her land in anyway she’s no right to ask for anything. I renewed our fences which are entirely on my land and my responsibility and the nice side is facing us. I’ve seen some gardens where both neighbours have their own fence as they both want to see the nice side.

All I can say there are some strange etiquette rules in this country.....

Neighbour is being a dick. It’s people like this that allow these stupid rules to drag on rather than using common sense and being grateful that someone else has actually paid for a brand new fence. I get so sick of the ‘that’s how it’s always been done’ comments no matter how stupid the ‘rules’ are!

No idea of the niceties and haven't read the full thread, but has no enterprising company come up with fencing that looks nice from both sites?

I was told it’s normal to have the posts facing your garden but believe that’s because any horizontal posts could be used to climb over the fence and therefore it’s more secure to have them facing in. It wasn’t to be nice!

There's nothing in law to say which side it has to face.

I've never heard of this! I grew up with a fence that looked the same on both sides and I currently live in a house with the same.

@singaSong Yes they do - this is all I've ever known!

The right hand boundary is your responsibility so the posts go on your side. She was right.

How can you know which is the OP’s responsibility if you haven’t seen the deeds?

Nah, your fence, you get the nice side. You wouldn't do that with curtains or blinds would you? Have the nice side facing out so the neighbours and passers by have something attractive to look at! Of course you wouldn't 😀

I would've thought that the only reason to have the 'nicer' side facing out is that you're keeping up appearances for people walking past the border of your garden... Not necessarily when it borders onto another garden.

Neighbour is not 'right' as there's no law! Just because something is traditionally done one way there's nothing to say that it always has to be that way. As long as nothing is encroaching onto her land it's fine.

Unless it’s wtitten in your title deeds no one has responsibility for fencing! Both my neighbours replaced the fences last year asked me for no money towards the cost. Both have put the uglier side inwards on my garden, do I care? Absolutely not! I got free new fencing on both sides who am I to complain about what side is towards my garden when I didn’t contribute a penny! Some people have waaaaaay too much time on their hands.

N OOOOO she is NOT right poster. In leases and law, YOU have the nice side unless your neighbour chooses to pay for the fence HERSELF. There are SO many posters on here spouting incorrect information.
Please refer to your deeds, and the local council, to absolutely confirm that the OWNER (you) of the fence, has the "better side". It IS fact. Reassure yourself first, and then tell your neighbour! Good luck xxxx

Yes and no. As everyone else has said, once upon a day the less nice side would have been expected to be at your neighbour’s side.
If it was me, and if you normally get on with her, tomorrow I would buy her some cakes or flowers, go knock and say you hope you can get back to being friendly. It’s a silly thing to fall out over and if she’d come to see you when you first began to erect the fence you could have come to a mutual agreement about it, but not after You’d finished. Make it light and silly, play ignorant of the unwritten rule. After all, we all need good neighbours... there’s a song there somewhere!

As I understand it now fencing is equally shared between neighbours and bounderies bordering on public footpaths are landowners responsibility. As for the "nice " side we've put ours facing neighbours to stop kids climbing up the higher fences. We paid for both our fences as neighbours are not well off and said couldn't pay half 😒 or indeed anything (sigh)

I don’t think it’s law - it may just be tradition - I don’t know but yes - the right hand side is your responsibility so you’d get the posts. Your other neighbour would also have the posts in their garden. It’s the same principle for upkeep of hedges.

Either way - she should have said something beforehand (assuming your NDN was in) but why on earth didn’t you speak to them before buying and agreeing and doing all this work???

I haven’t read the fully thread but I live in the US.

The neighbours contribute to the fences equally. The fences panels alternate, one nice, one not the whole length of the garden.

It looks weird quite frankly.

IMO...I don't care what the etiquette is... as long as none of the fence or the posts are over your neighbour's boundary I think it is up to you. Personally, I would have the attractive side face me.

OP said the posts are concrete and haven’t been changed - it’s merely the wooden panels in between the posts that she has replaced.

There is no debate about whose side the posts should be on because the posts are in the middle! It’s only the facing of the wooden panels that the neighbour is complaining about.

I'm with Cavender (also in US). But technically this is custom not law although it's often written into the CC&Rs when you buy your home. It was where we bought our first home. Where we live now (in the country) it's every homeowner for him/herself.