Trimming HOA hanging over my property

There is a large tree at my back fence that I have asked the Board to trim off my property line for 2 years. I had my tree trimming company come and trim 3 trees in my back yard and asked them to cut back the branches off the HOA tree hanging over my property. The board has now fined me $100.00. In CA the law is that a homeowner can cut branches off their property line as long as the tree is not damage. The HOA seems to think that they are the only ones who can do that. Anyone know who trumps, the CA law or the HOA CC&R's?

Welcome to the Forum, Anna. Here's what the CS a summary of what HOA attorneys at davis-stirling.com have to say:

QUESTION: Our association has a tree limb extending into the back yard of a neighboring property.
...Nuisance.... branches and roots that intrude onto the property of another are considered a nuisance and your neighbor may abate the nuisance by cutting the offending branches and roots at the boundary line--so long as he acts reasonably not to seriously damage your tree. (Civ. Code §3346.)"

I haven't read the (CA) Civil Code myself, so I think you want to review it.

But I'm curious: what is the wording in your CC&Rs on this topic?

Just how is it that you're supposedly in violation, Anna?

I went to the City and asked if it was ok to cut branches on my side of the property and I was told yes. I told the Board what the city said and they seem to think that it doesn't matter what the city says they go by the CC&R's. I am debating if I should have an attorney write to them letting them know that California Law is senior to the CC&R's or just write the board a letter telling them I am not in agreement with their finding and in the future I will let them know first I am going to trim any branches off my property unless they want to have someone come out and trim them and just pay the fine in protest so this doesn't go legal because legal is going to cost much more.

Case of asking forgiveness than permission?

No, there is no need to waive the fine.

"A waiver is the voluntary relinquishment or surrender of some known right or privilege"

Asking the board to waive the fine implies the OP was guilty, but.....

California code shows that what the OP did was totally legal and the Board should find that the OP committed no infraction and the fine should be rescinded.

Sorry, I was off line for a while. The branches were cut at the property line. I looked up the law before I had them cut. I did not want to write a whole story on this but I guess you may need a little more information. I have lived in this association for 30 years, since it was built. I had no problems with the tree until the mid 2000's when it got completely out of hand. I went to the Board meeting around 2003 and found out that the new board president thought that pruning trees was too expensive and did not have them done for years. We elected a new board and they cleaned out all the bushes and trees behind my home which is a green fire belt because our neighborhood is in an extremely high fire hazard area. In 1985, when our association was but together, it was done differently than it is now a days were common area is calculated up and each homeowner pays a certain percentage. All HOA common area in our HOA is on the private property of each owner and shows on the property assessment as such but the CC&R's and Specific plans are very clean that all work on these outlined areas must be maintained by the HOA even though it is on private property. The lady below me owns part of the hill as I do. She planted plants on the Fire belt to have privacy when she moved in about 29 years ago that were not approved for the fire belt at that time nor with the Board. Since the Board back in the 2000's cleaned out her bushes,she has been upset. She has stop Board work orders over the years for cleaning up the fire belt by yelling at the workers and has tried to stop tree trimming by doing the same. She also threaten to sue the association at one time and it went legal and the association won. I believe she has started with the new board again because when I cut the branches off my property line she came to my home and told me that is her tree and her bushes and I can't cut the tree off my property line without Board approval. I explained I did ask for them to be trimmed off my property but I received no reply, she just kept going on and on about her property as usual. I wrote the board right away letting them know the situation of having the branches trimmed off my property line. I have been to two meetings and this new board knows nothing about the past litigation because they said that the records from that time are missing and that they now only save everything for 7 years. I called the last Board president from the 2000's and asked if the situation with this neighbor was handled and she said yes and that she has no right to take advantage of a new Board and start this all over again after we paid to have legal work done. I think this Board may be confused since they have no back round information or that I am confusing them trying to give them too much back-round information. I am currently writing a letter to the Board with all the emails since 2013 regarding removing branches off my property line what was done and what wasn't over these years. My husband said I need to stop going over back round information that the current board does not have and stick to the current facts because I am confusing everyone. I agree with him. There is much much more to this situation, but this would end up a novel.

Let me try to summarize:

1) neighbor A planted plants in a fire belt.
2) The Association had deferred pruning due to cost, etc.
3) You approached the Board in 2003 which prompted the Board to realize the extent of the issue.
4) The Board removed all the plants in the fire belt (as they should have never been there.
5) Neighbor A was ticked off and has become possessive of plant life she can control.
6) A tree near the fire belt, which Neighbor A sees as hers, was causing a nuisance to you.
7) You approached the board who did not take action to remedy the situation
8) When you were having yard work done on your home, you asked that the encroaching limbs be pruned at the property line (in accordance with CA law).
9) Neighbor A (likely) complained to the Board
The Board, perhaps not even looking at what was done, took action against you for damage to common area.
10) You are attempting to gather information that supports what you have done to bring to the Board and fight the enforcement action.

Is this the crux of the current issue?

AnnaA3 : Tree wars : "Who says that money doesn't grow on trees ?" - anonymous online commenter during latest bitter urban tree war in my jurisdiction .

1 - Respectfully, it's risky to rely on property law advice from government.

2 - It may be a complex issue to sort out whether your CCRs or declaration contain some over-riding protocol for owners to try to get the corporation to carry branch/root pruning etc. of common area growth.

Your detailed backstory may show why there may be lots of local concerns adjacent to you.

If there was such 'trigger to trim' protocol, maybe it could have saved the trimming expense and later hassles. If there was none such - or the corporation ignored it - maybe a different story.

3 - It may further take a judge to sort out whether or not an internal protocol trumps the widespread right of neighbours to prune overhanging, trespassing growth but short of killing the tree.

4 - Expensively litigated urban tree fights here indicate that forestry/tree nuisance laws may be in flux. Lots of bucks might get burned up some legal fireplaces . . .

Timb4, yes that kind of sums it up but the brushes were only cleaned out and trimmed then she got upset and has been ever since. Since the HOA common area is on her property (like every other homeowner in this association) she has tried many times to stop maintenance on the green fire belt. She has received letters in the past to stop doing this but she continues and when a new board is elected, it seems to start all over again. The CC&R's are specific about homeowners not planting or using the HOA in anyway even though it is privately owned. This sounds confusing to some.

Our Specific plans show a green fire belt between homes and on slopes. It is a fire belt that has specific plants on it. It is a fire break.

Bobd4, I have a letter into the management company and Board with a timeline on this situation. Luckily, I have all the letters in writing to the Board via the management company on this particular situation going back to 2013. There is nothing in the CC&R's that covers HOA trees encroaching on private property not belonging to the HOA common area.

I am asking that the management company gets their attorney to look at my information and make a determination.

Anna,

With a little searching I found the article that had been linked to in a previous thread. This was written by a California attorney who specializes in tree-related law. The article is at:
http://www.treelaw.com/articles/wam.fall.2002.html

If you go to that site, click on the menu link for "Articles" for additional information.