Owning a house in Australia is one of the biggest dreams for many Chinese residents after settling here. But as desirable as a house is, it carries one risk greater than living in an apartment — troublesome neighbours. Beyond common disputes over noise and pets, living in a house can also bring neighbour disputes caused by fences, trees and similar issues.

Today we will look in detail at the essential legal knowledge you need when you live in a house in Australia and run into a neighbour dispute.

The most common type: “fence disputes”

Among the various types of neighbour disputes, fence-related issues are by far the most frequent. The first concept to understand is the dividing fence, which is usually located in the shared area between neighbours. Common problems include: “I want to put up a new dividing fence, but my neighbour disagrees — what do I do?” and “My neighbour wants to put up a fence and is asking me to pay half the cost — what do I do?”

Under the laws of most states, before building a fence you must serve a “fence notice” on your neighbour, although most lawyers will advise you to first have an informal, private conversation with the neighbour. If that goes nowhere, then seek legal advice.

Neighbours commonly disagree on the following points:

the material of the fence (timber, bamboo or metal) and its colour;

the height of the fence;

the extent of the fencing work;

the quote (how the cost is split between the two parties).

If the parties cannot reach agreement but one of them is determined to build the fence, that party can serve a Boundary Notice on the other, setting out how the boundary for the fencing work is to be drawn. The notice must state that the owner and the neighbour cannot agree on the location of the common boundary, and a registered surveyor must be engaged to carry out a survey. Once the neighbour receives the notice, they have 7 days to mark out with survey pegs where they believe the boundary lies, or to engage their own registered surveyor.

Your neighbour’s tree has grown into your yard — trimming it yourself can have serious consequences

This is an all-too-familiar problem for people living in a house: your neighbour’s tree is thriving, its branches reach over into your yard, blocking the sunlight, and leaves and branches drop all over your garden. In NSW there is a specific piece of legislation dealing with this issue, called the Trees (Disputes Between Neighbours) Act 2006. This Act deals specifically with tree disputes on private land and does not apply to certain land under the control of local government.

Under this Trees Dispute Act, a landowner can apply to the court for an order to remedy, restrain or prevent damage to property on, or any injury to any person on, that land.

But what if the neighbour refuses to trim their tree? Or someone says, “I won’t sue my neighbour — I’ll just cut off the branches hanging over my yard myself.” Can they do that?

Absolutely not.

Remember: even though the neighbour’s tree has grown across your boundary, the tree itself is still the neighbour’s private property. Trimming it without permission amounts to interfering with the neighbour’s property and is unlawful.

In fact, quite a few people have done exactly this and paid hefty fines as a result. A Chinese woman on Sydney’s North Shore was fined A$83,000 for unilaterally cutting down two of her neighbour’s trees.

A few years ago in Adelaide there was also a particularly well-known case. Two Adelaide men, Tim Crichton and Zbigniew Bendyk, felt that their neighbour’s tree had grown too lushly and was extending into their own yard. They also noticed that some of the branches had already died, so they called in a gardener to do some trimming. When the neighbour couple returned from holiday, they found that their tree had been “stripped bare” and, in a fury, took the two men and the gardener to court. The three faced fines of up to A$120,000.

The two men later filed a statement claiming they had consulted the gardener beforehand and confirmed that it was lawful to trim the dead branches hanging over their own yard. They also argued that many of the branches looked as if they were about to fall, and that if they dropped into their yard they might injure someone.

It is true that, under the law, if a neighbour’s tree genuinely interferes with your ordinary use and enjoyment of your property, it can be trimmed. But the key precondition is that you must first notify the local council. If you don’t, it is unlawful.

Reported by the neighbours because your Halloween decorations were too realistic?

There was a household in NSW that was visited and warned by police. The reason: their Halloween display included a zombie figure that was so realistic it frightened several children walking past, and a number of neighbours lodged complaints.

Some people thought this was absurd — scary Halloween decorations are just part of the festive atmosphere, the whole city is doing it, so why should this attract a police warning?

The lifelike zombie decoration had been made by the homeowner following a YouTube tutorial, using foam, pillows and hessian.

After the police came back a second time and asked for the zombie decoration to be taken down, the homeowner was told that the zombie figure had triggered the memory of a neighbour in the community who had previously died by suicide, and so amounted to behaviour that could cause offence.

The incident sparked a discussion among legal commentators about homeowners’ legal rights when it comes to holiday decorations. Rick Sarre, an emeritus professor of law and criminal justice at the University of South Australia, said it depends entirely on the context. Where decorations are publicly visible, even if they are on the homeowner’s own property, police have the power to assess whether they are likely to cause offence to others. As long as the decoration is directed at the public and is offensive, police are entitled to ask the homeowner to take it down.

Final thoughts

There is a saying that between neighbours, 70% comes down to good relations and 30% to the law. When a dispute arises, being able to use that 70% of goodwill to communicate well is of course the best outcome. But it is not out of the question that you will run into a difficult neighbour with whom reason gets you nowhere — in which case you have no choice but to pick up the legal tools available to protect your interests. People living in a house, especially those with a back yard to look after, are more likely to face these kinds of disputes. While you enjoy a comfortable lifestyle, make sure you also have a full understanding of your rights and, when necessary, seek help from a lawyer.