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Letter to a neighbour about a shared seawall

Seawalls on adjoining lots tend to share their problems: where one is failing, water and soil can move behind the next. The first letter sets the tone for everything after it, so this one stays friendly and sticks to what you have seen. It proposes one step only, a joint inspection, and asks nobody to commit to a repair.

This is a template, not legal advice. Have an attorney review anything you sign or send in a dispute.

Before you use it

Describe, do not diagnoseSay what you saw and where. Leave the cause to the inspector, and do not assign blame.
Date your photosTake them at the same spot at high and low tide if you can, and say when each was taken.
Why it can matter beyond the two of youSome cities treat tidal water crossing onto a neighbour's property as a code problem. Delray Beach and Deerfield Beach are two whose rules we have published: see Delray Beach and Deerfield Beach.
Know what to look forOur failing seawall guide lists the signs worth photographing.

The template

Fill in the lines by hand or copy the text into your own document.

Letter to a neighbour about a shared seawall

Date: ______________________

Dear ______________________,

I am ______________________, your neighbour at ______________________________. I am writing about the seawall along our properties, where ______________________________ (for example: our walls meet, or the wall runs across both lots).

What I have noticed

On ______________ I noticed ________________________________________ at ______________________________ (where along the wall). I have enclosed ______ photographs, taken on ______________________.

I do not know the cause, and I am not suggesting either of us is at fault. I am raising it now because problems on one section of a wall can affect the section next to it, and they are usually simpler to deal with early.

What I am proposing

Would you be willing to have one licensed marine contractor or engineer look at both sections during the same visit, and share the written findings with both of us? I would suggest splitting the cost of that inspection ______________ / ______________. This is only about finding out where things stand. I am not asking either of us to commit to any repair.

If you already have a recent inspection, survey or permit for your section, I would be grateful for a copy, and I am happy to share mine.

Next step

Could you let me know by ______________ whether this works for you? You can reach me at ______________________ (phone) or ______________________________ (email), or knock on my door.

Thank you, and kind regards,

______________________________
______________________________ (address)

Enclosures: ______ photographs dated ______________________

This is a template, not legal advice. Have an attorney review anything you sign or send in a dispute.

From walldockdeck.com/free/templates/neighbor-shared-seawall-letter/

Twelve signs a seawall is failing

What to look for, where to look for it, and what it means when you find it. Walk your wall in twenty minutes.

A screening sheet for owners, not an engineering inspection.

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