Neighbour Drilled into our Garage Wall

Our new house was built on the boundary line and the external garage wall is facing our neighours and becomes their fence.

We recently found out that the neighbour has drilled into our wall to hang a flip-up clothes line. The main issue we have is that he never asked us in the first place and it's quite a large clothes line.

We assume the garage wall on that boundary line is single brick and yet to confirm if he has drilled through, into our garage.

I'm trying to find out if our neighbour has a leg to stand on if we request him to remove it but struggling to find it in the Acts and Regs.

He needs to make it free-standing and my partner will fix the holes.



Another issue: He's been digging in the front garden and apparently putting homemade agi-drains in from Youtube with cardboard and crushed rock. I can see water is pooling towards his water tap and closer to our fence and driveway.

My concern is that over time, the water is going to go under our driveway and cause cracks.

Would this be the case and what actions can we take.

Agree he should have asked first but my view is that when you build on the boundary the neighbour should be able to what they want with that wall, provided it doesn’t cause damage or threaten structural stability or waterproofing etc.

does this impact on your use of the garage or is it the principal that worries you? Building on the boundary is usually an encroachment on the neighbours enjoyment of their yard so you need to be prepared to take the good with the bad.

don’t let a small issue spoil the benefit of good neighbour relations, easier said than done..

I think you'll find that given you paid for 100% of the wall and that your neighbour has contributed nothing (as opposed to what they would have had to in the case of a boundary fence) that they have no right to attach anything to your wall.
You can also see from the photo that your wall is located on your property side and is not directly in line with the wooden fence. Your neighbour is in effect trespassing
It may also depend where you are located.
In SA and QLD walls that are part of a house, garage or other building are excluded from being considered a fence. Not sure about elsewhere although I suspect all states are much the same in this regard
You might also like to consult your Insurance Company because this is the sort of thing they'd love to use to exclude you from a future claim.
SA law states;
"A wall to a building that is located on the boundary is not a fence, even though it may serve as one. A boundary wall remains the sole property of the building owner."
QLD law states;
"The Neighbourhood Disputes (Dividing Fences and Trees) Act 2011 also specifically excludes walls that are part of a house, garage or other building from being considered a fence"

Interesting about the clothes line. I expect the boundary runs along the outer edge of the bricks, because if it was elsewhere you either wouldn’t be on the boundary or you would be encroaching on your neighbour’s property. If that is the case, the screws or bolt or whatever they have used to penetrate the wall have encroached onto you side of the boundary.

How come your built to the boundary? No setbacks?

A stern threat with suing tends to work a treat these days. Considering he damaged your property.

Even IF the wall is on the boundary, the holes have been drilled into your building structure on your property.

So many disputes now about this type of situation.

Geeeez, whatever happened to good neighborliness these days??

How exactly does their clothesline impact you??

Whatever happened to common sense and good manners?
"I didn't pay for that wall, it doesn't belong to me, maybe I should ask if the owner minds before I go drilling holes in it?"

OP, does it really affect you? I would rather have a good neighbour relations than picking a fight over something that doesnt really affect you

"Doesn't really affect you"
So how far do you let a neighbour go in interfering with your property?
What are the insurance implications?
If damage results will your insurance company cover it given it's an illegal installation?
How would you feel if it wasn't a clothesline but something that will carry significantly more mass?
Is there somewhere where you draw the line or do you just expect someone to have the decency to ask prior to drilling holes in your house?

We bought the house as is and it was already built. I had no other options other than internal elements.

In WA a zero lot build is in fact generally 100mm or so off the lot boundary, i.e. if there were 2 zero lot garages built side by side there'd be room to run a colorbond fence between them. Very few people would actually do that and most just run the fence up to the garage wall and leave a bit of a gap.
The regs state,
An adjoining owner is not permitted to paint, render or attach anything (such as pot plants, clotheslines and basketball hoops) to the wall without the permission of the owner of the wall. It is suggested that any such permission be in writing and retained for future reference. A boundary wall may not be considered a dividing fence and an adjoining owner may still erect a sufficient fence along the boundary line.

Dividing fences a guide (stirling.wa.gov.au)

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