How to resolve a builder error from 15 years ago.

[NeedSomeHelpFor]

I live in a condo complex in California, and I am having a dispute with my neighbor. The problem is with the Air condition unit's location. When my neighbor bought her place when it's newly constructed, she chose not to have AC, where as my unit's previous owner chose to. Due to an error from the builder, they located my Air Condition's unit in the middle of a shared space, so that there is not enough room to have a second unit. It has been like this for the past 15 years, which is fine because my tenant didn't want AC.

But now she does, and she wants to move my current AC unit to accommodate hers. Since this is a builder error, we talked to them and ask for help, but the builder said since it has past the 10 years mark, they are not going to help. They would have fixed it if it's within 10 years. We then talked to the HOA, and the HOA is paying half of the total cost ($500) to relocate my air con unit.

Who should be responsible for the rest of the cost? To me, since my neighbor is the one who chose not to have AC to begin with which was the root of the problem, I think the neighbor should but I offered to split it and the neighbor wants me to pay for it all still.

 

[Zigner]

I live in a condo complex in California, and I am having a dispute with my neighbor. The problem is with the Air condition unit's location. When my neighbor bought her place when it's newly constructed, she chose not to have AC, where as my unit's previous owner chose to. Due to an error from the builder, they located my Air Condition's unit in the middle of a shared space, so that there is not enough room to have a second unit. It has been like this for the past 15 years, which is fine because my tenant didn't want AC.

But now she does, and she wants to move my current AC unit to accommodate hers. Since this is a builder error, we talked to them and ask for help, but the builder said since it has past the 10 years mark, they are not going to help. They would have fixed it if it's within 10 years. We then talked to the HOA, and the HOA is paying half of the total cost ($500) to relocate my air con unit.

Who should be responsible for the rest of the cost? To me, since my neighbor is the one who chose not to have AC to begin with which was the root of the problem, I think the neighbor should but I offered to split it and the neighbor wants me to pay for it all still.

It's your AC that you are moving. It seems to me that you are responsible.

 

[tranquility]

It's your AC that you are moving. It seems to me that you are responsible.

It is the neighbor's AC that is being put in, why does he not have responsibility for the cost of installation?

I know the builder would be past the statute of repose and would not have responsibility. The innocent OP may have some easement rights for the use of the "shared space" (whatever that means). I am impressed the HOA would put up any money for this. I suppose they feel they should have inspected the installation in the first place and feel a responsibility for this discovered tort even though they may be past the statute of repose as well.

The best answer is to split the cost with the neighbor. It would be a lot easier and less stressful than a small claims court over the $500 left to be paid.

 

[LdiJ]

It is the neighbor's AC that is being put in, why does he not have responsibility for the cost of installation?

I know the builder would be past the statute of repose and would not have responsibility. The innocent OP may have some easement rights for the use of the "shared space" (whatever that means). I am impressed the HOA would put up any money for this. I suppose they feel they should have inspected the installation in the first place and feel a responsibility for this discovered tort even though they may be past the statute of repose as well.

The best answer is to split the cost with the neighbor. It would be a lot easier and less stressful than a small claims court over the $500 left to be paid.

While I agree that splitting the cost is probably the better way to go, I am not sure that I agree with your assessment of the legalities. I can see no way that its the neighbor's fault that his AC unit was installed in the wrong place.

 

[Zigner]

It is the neighbor's AC that is being put in, why does he not have responsibility for the cost of installation?

I know the builder would be past the statute of repose and would not have responsibility. The innocent OP may have some easement rights for the use of the "shared space" (whatever that means). I am impressed the HOA would put up any money for this. I suppose they feel they should have inspected the installation in the first place and feel a responsibility for this discovered tort even though they may be past the statute of repose as well.

The best answer is to split the cost with the neighbor. It would be a lot easier and less stressful than a small claims court over the $500 left to be paid.

The OP is the one moving his A/C. The OP is responsible for the cost. He can't (short of a sympathetic court) force the neighbor to pay anything.

 

[tranquility]

The OP is the one moving his A/C. The OP is responsible for the cost. He can't (short of a sympathetic court) force the neighbor to pay anything.

The neighbor can't (short of a sympathetic court) force the OP to move his A/C. Heck, the neighbor may not even have standing to sue anyone other than the HOA. Why do you assume he has a right to this "shared" space from the OP? I'd love to see how it was written up as to the purpose of the shared space. What if the OP's A/C was "properly" placed but was too large for the A/C the neighbor wants?

The OP is not at any fault here. He bought the unit from another. He may not even have been aware of a potential problem until the neighbor wanted to place the unit. If I were the OP and the neighbor told me I was responsible for unit and would not discuss it further, I would point out a big pile of sand and tell him to pound it until he gets what he wants. It would also be interesting to see the equitable issues (laches) or other statutes of limitation/repose issues involved. The NEIGHBOR was the one who sat on his "rights". He made his choices when things were being done 15 years ago.

 

[Zigner]

The neighbor can't (short of a sympathetic court) force the OP to move his A/C. Heck, the neighbor may not even have standing to sue anyone other than the HOA. Why do you assume he has a right to this "shared" space from the OP? I'd love to see how it was written up as to the purpose of the shared space. What if the OP's A/C was "properly" placed but was too large for the A/C the neighbor wants?

The OP is not at any fault here. He bought the unit from another. He may not even have been aware of a potential problem until the neighbor wanted to place the unit. If I were the OP and the neighbor told me I was responsible for unit and would not discuss it further, I would point out a big pile of sand and tell him to pound it until he gets what he wants. It would also be interesting to see the equitable issues (laches) or other statutes of limitation/repose issues involved. The NEIGHBOR was the one who sat on his "rights". He made his choices when things were being done 15 years ago.

I replied from the position that the OP has already decided to move the unit and I suspect that the HOA may be requiring it. As such, it's on the OP.

 

[tranquility]

I replied from the position that the OP has already decided to move the unit and I suspect that the HOA may be requiring it. As such, it's on the OP.

But those are not our facts:

But now she does, and she wants to move my current AC unit to accommodate hers. Since this is a builder error, we talked to them and ask for help, but the builder said since it has past the 10 years mark, they are not going to help. They would have fixed it if it's within 10 years. We then talked to the HOA, and the HOA is paying half of the total cost ($500) to relocate my air con unit.

Who should be responsible for the rest of the cost? To me, since my neighbor is the one who chose not to have AC to begin with which was the root of the problem, I think the neighbor should but I offered to split it and the neighbor wants me to pay for it all still.

I'm not even sure the HOA can require the OP to move the unit absent clear guidelines in the bylaws. They are the ones who probably control/own the shared space. But, they slept on their rights too. Could the neighbor sue the HOA? They would have standing to, but, sue them for what? Again, we'd have to go to the bylaws to see if the unit has a equal right to this shared space. Then, we might have a breach of the bylaws but have to go back in the loop to the neighbor making a choice 15 years ago that was part of the source of the problem.

The HOA is taking on 1/2. The OP seems willing to split the other 1/2 with the neighbor. The neighbor should agree. The only thing the OP did was buy a condo. The HOA didn't do it's duty, nor did the neighbor do due diligence when the unit was installed to make sure it was done right. The builder, who should have been aware of the issue is at fault but escapes liability because of the statute of repose. The condo seller may have some issue, but will also escape by the statute of repose/limitations and/or laches too. The OP is not trespassing as they did nothing intentionally. Not only all that, the bylaws indirectly or the HOA board/manager directly probably has given a license to the OP to have the A/C there. Otherwise, at some point, the OP could claim ownership of the space under adverse possession. Even now, there may be some easement that has developed. (Unless permission/license were given.)

 

[festival]

Modern AC systems (and heat pumps) come in a wide variety of shapes and sizes. They are now designed to fit (or retrofit) into a variety of small and/or odd places so they can be added to existing building spaces. Some are thin and can be wall mounted. I suggest that someone get more estimates for a variety of systems with lower installation costs without moving the existing unit.

 

[NeedSomeHelpFor]

My comments

Thank you for all your advice. Tranquility, what you said is exactly my thought. Zigner, as Tranquility pointed out in my original post, I haven't decided to move the A/C, in fact I don't want to be involved at all as everything is working fine for me for the past 15 years. The only change now is that my neighbor wants to install a new A/C unit and they need space, so I am just trying to help them out.

And festival, my neighbor claims she asked for a few quotes and it's all around 500 to move a unit. (My gut feel is that it's somewhat reasonable.) The space is very tight, so it's impossible to install any new unit without moving mine. Wall mounted ones may work but I guess my neighbor doesn't want that... didn't dig too deep into what exact model they want.

Transquility: "The only thing the OP did was buy a condo. The HOA didn't do it's duty, nor did the neighbor do due diligence when the unit was installed to make sure it was done right."

The above is exactly my thought and what I explained to my neighbor. What my neighbor claims is that well, my house has a problem, and when I bought the house I bought the problem also, and that I should have a house inspection to discover this problem. (Which of course I did have a house inspection before I bought the house, and it certainly did not find this issue since everything was working properly for my house.) And if "house inspection" is a problem then well.. THEY are the ones that should have discovered this problem during their inspection as they should realize there's no space for the A/C when they want one.

So yeah, all of these points makes me think that it's really a problem from the builder, and since they are not fixing it and neither of us really did anything wrong on purpose, it's only fair to split the cost and that's what I last told them. If they are not willing to split the cost, then I am not going to approve anyone moving my unit. I don't know what they are going to do now, I haven't heard from them since I was telling them firm that it's only fair to split the cost.

 

[Zigner]

Based on the clarification, I agree that you don't necessarily have to do anything.

With that said -

We're talking about $125 here. Sure, you can dig your heals in if you'd like...but you're going to have pissed off neighbors for a long time.

ETA: I came to $125 as follows: $500 total cost. HOA agreed to pay 1/2, leaving $250. OP is already willing to pay half of what's left, so in essence, we're talking about $125

 

[tranquility]

Based on the clarification, I agree that you don't necessarily have to do anything.

With that said -

We're talking about $125 here. Sure, you can dig your heals in if you'd like...but you're going to have pissed off neighbors for a long time.

ETA: I came to $125 as follows: $500 total cost. HOA agreed to pay 1/2, leaving $250. OP is already willing to pay half of what's left, so in essence, we're talking about $125

But wouldn't the OP be the pissed off neighbor for a long time to pay the complete cost? It seems he is already bending over a bit. Don't get me wrong, I don't disagree with the point you're making. It's just that if I thought I was in the right and still offered to pay 1/2 to keep the peace and the other party continued to insist I pay it all...I might just do it to avoid the hassle factor. It would probably stick in my throat for a long time though.

 

[Zigner]

But wouldn't the OP be the pissed off neighbor for a long time to pay the complete cost? It seems he is already bending over a bit. Don't get me wrong, I don't disagree with the point you're making. It's just that if I thought I was in the right and still offered to pay 1/2 to keep the peace and the other party continued to insist I pay it all...I might just do it to avoid the hassle factor. It would probably stick in my throat for a long time though.

Yes, I agree...but the neighbor isn't here asking

 

[tranquility]

Yes, I agree...but the neighbor isn't here asking

I've got big dogs. I walk them twice a day. I know the route I'd take from then on.

 

[NeedSomeHelpFor]

Ahaha... I used to have a little dog that I walk around the neighborhood, but that cute little fur ball won't threaten anyone.

And yeah actually, I do want to have a good relationship with them. Always better to have friends right? Which is why I am offering to pay half! The situation is slightly better, I didn't mention that I already moved out to another house and this place is now just a rental unit, so I won't be facing the neighbor. However I still do want to maintain a good relationship with them, so if my tenants are doing something crazy they can warn me.

All your comments made me feel better. As far as I know I am already trying to play nice, even though the neighbor doesn't seem to think so. All your thoughts helped reassure I am being reasonable.