Tree roots & dirt pushing on my condo

Hi, we are condo owners, and love our neighbors, board, etc. Our unit is in the back and we have a slope behind us with large oak trees. The roots and dirt are pushing against a solid cement v ditch (it is about 2 ft tall and the roots have cracked and lifted it.) The drainage ditch then puts pressure on the 2 foot common wall that separates it from our patio.
I don't know if either of these constitute a 'retaining wall' or if one is legally necessary.

The roots/earth push on the common wall which is now slanting in toward our patio. (It is stucco). Our patio has cracked and lifted so much (it is cement with tile on top) it looks like something is about to hatch out of it. There is a very small place in our patio that is open, where the spicket is. We keep it covered. I can reach in and grab a handful of roots. Also, when it rains the v ditch has about a 1/2 in. lifted crack so water drains directly under our patio and not out to the street as it is supposed to, and then 'sits' at our foundation. Once it was 3 1/2 inches. It just slowly drains under our house.

Our house is sinking. We have roots growing out of our foundation. There has also been a drip line right at our foundation which has been a source of water to the tree roots. We have so much pressure on our house that the walls are bowing, my kitchen window area sunk so low I can stick my finger in the space between the window and the condo. Had to tape it.

Our board is nice. I have been giving them all this info, pictures, etc. A claim was filed and a structural engineer did a report for ins. company. Apparently nothing proved HOA had been negligent so claim denied. I have asked HOA for a cc of report but have not yet had a response. I don't think anyone thought of this 30 yrs ago when condos were built, but our house is being attacked! Closet doors change from shutting proper to (overnight) having big gaps. Cabinets aren't shutting, etc.

I do not think my neighbors want this to happen, but I also don't know if we have reserve money for this. Since the first engineers report and then the denial, things have just been in 'limbo'. We don't want to loose our condo or put stress on our reserves. The claim is not closed yet, she just said 'failed to prove HOA liable. Any advice would be great.

Thank you for your response. The HOA (months ago) did send out their own arborist (tree is in the common area so it is owned by HOA) but all he did was assess the health of the tree. He was not permitted to comment on my patio, just to say that the tree was healthy.

This is the same report that was sent to the ins. company when I was able to get HOA to submit claim. If you happen to know, is there a specific type of arborist to look for, as far as being able to say "this is causing it, and they are liable"?

Mark! You made my day. Thank you; (shoulda looked a little closer at your post, I guess).

Again,
Thank you!

Amy,

To expand on Marks information, I found an article, http://www.treelaw.com/articles/clm.3.02.html. The article was written for attorneys considering tree cases. The article included the following:

Do not confuse a certified arborist with a consulting arborist. Anyone who passes the test administered by the International Society of Arboriculture, the trade organization for the arboricultural industry, may become a certified arborist. While there are many certified arborists who may be qualified to serve as a consultant, there are many more whose only qualification is that they have a pick-up truck and a chainsaw. There is nothing inherent about being a certified arborist which prepares the arborist for performing forensic work or valuation of damages. A consulting arborist with forensic training, regardless of "certification," is the appropriate expert to look at questions of causation and valuation. To find a qualified consulting arborist in your area, contact the American Society of Consulting Arborists in Rockville, Maryland at (301) 947-0483 (e-mail: [email protected]) or check their online referral database at http://www.ascaconsultants.org. You could also consult a local attorney specializing in tree disputes for recommendations.

It is a relatively low expense (compared to the cost of your home) to consult an attorney and have that attorney notify the HOA of it's obligations. You would probably want to hire an attorney who is experienced in HOA law, rather than hire a general attorney.

If it is only a tree and not the earth shifting then it should be pretty easy to stop the tree roots from encroaching on your property. However, the question is, how much of the tree roots are going towards your property and how tall is the tree. At worst, given the amount of money you have in your home, it might be worth it to cut the tree down and then negotiate with the HOA afterwards as to the value of the tree. In California a tree's roots and branches can be cut at the lot line. But I don't know if that works with a condominium. There are root poisons that can be applied to the soil that will kill roots. They must be used with care because they can harm people (they affect DNA synthesis). But if the roots are necessary to stabilize the tree against the force of the wind then killing the roots will cause a hazard as the tree might fall down. It sounds like a small tree that has now grown too large and is too close to the home.

No expertise here, I work with computers.

Yours,
Jackie

hello,

I attempted resolution over the course of about 18 months, in 2015/2016. Here is the issue once again, but short and to the point:

1: V ditch behind my unit sits between oak tree and my back patio. V ditch and tree are in common area. V ditch has a large crack from tree roots. Water flows down the V ditch when it rains, but does not drain to street, it goes straight down the crack and under my patio. Major oak tree root issue under my patio. Lifting, cracking, separating. I went to annual meeting in 1/2016, stood before board and presented info and pictures.

I have given board VIDEO of water flow doing this. I have given them VIDEO of water at my foundation. (solid patio, with a cut out by home foundation.) Lots of emails, a claim was filed through HOA, adjuster said I had not proved negligence on HOA.

They sent someone out to jackhammer through my patio to see if there were tree roots in the cracked and lifted area. There are lots, a couple were as big as a garden hose. I took pictures, board was aware, etc. They filled it with sand and gave report to HOA.

The report from HOA's 'jackhammer guy' states two possible causes: tree roots, or an improper cement pour that was done to extend the original r exsisting patio. Report states the new slab was never 'joined' to existing patio slab. (this was done by prior owner). I asked HOA for info on Co. that did improper extention but was told there wasn't any, and this was an "inherited problem".) There is also an improper gas line that was run under patio, and an improper drainage area. The board and our mgmnt co were all fully aware of these issues.

They sent me a letter and offered me $2,000. toward the patio work, without stating any responsibility. They wanted me to take the issue on myself. This was way too big of a project for me, plus its not my issue to fix. (In a previous email with HOA I had told them I was fearful of hitting gas line.) I did not respond to the offer letter. That was in Nov. 2016. They did come out and fill the v ditch crack with some sort of putty stuff, but it lifted right back up again.

When I did not respond, board and mgmnt co were emailing with each other regarding issue. It was a 'what do we do if she doesn't accept offer' kind of conversation. I was inadvertently cc'd on an email which stated "we need to meet and come to a consensus on this. We have to restore the patio to it's original condition. Minus all the problems, of course." That statement came from our mgmnt co. That was the end of that. I was tired of working so hard.

Tiles are now cracking and lifting right outside my slider. We have a new mgmnt co, and I have sent a message to them. I told them that the lifting tiles present a trip hazard. They got right back to me, and said they would 'research the history of the tree' and get back with me. I have MS, my walking is shaky. I have two dogs that I take outside several times a day.

How long should I wait for new co. to respond? I am hoping they will review all docs from this and help me.

Thanks.

Thank you. I thought that also. (about $) I think I will give our new mgmnt co. a bit, to see if they can look thru history and respond.

Thanks again.

Definitive, no.

It would be a good argument.

In a situation where there is an argument of fault, the offering of a settlement (money) would beg the question why offer the money if you believe you are not at fault.

This is why I said to contact an attorney.
They would know if the offer would indicate fault or something else.

Amy
The MC cannot pay any monies that the BOD has not authorized so do not hold out hope for this. The problem is back in the BOD's lap. Time to hire an attorney and fight the BOD.

hi,

Update: Found an atty, I got nowhere with a 'strongly worded letter'. So I submitted my own arc. app and took on issue myself. (the tree roots have now taken over the front of my unit, huge roots popping up in grass, broke drainage and irrigation system etc. HOA has been aware of this for months if not years.)

Jackhammered up patio, and it was filled with huge tree roots. Former owner (also former HOA President) had opened a 4" hole in the common wall that is right up against drainage swale. ( The original drainage pipe for my patio was covered up with the new patio cement.)

Water from swale has been flowing directly under my patio with nowhere to go. Swale has large crack directly above 4" hole in common wall. Current HOA board is aware, has been aware since 2016.

I worked hard to get this corrected w/o too much hoopla. For almost 7 years the oak tree has been allowed to undermine my house. there was one tree root with a massive 'base' right under swale crack. It wad about 2 feet in 'girth' and ran all the way to my foundation. Roots that went across yard to under foundation were about 3-4" around. My contractor had to use chainsaw on roots, they were so 'established'.

I spent time and of course $ for legal advice, trying without success to get HOA to help with roots and drainage. the answer they gave was a 'sorry, we see a poorly installed patio' and they sent it off to their legal firm. That was when i knew if I wanted to stop damage I would have to do it myself.

I find it so disturbing that my HOA would knowingly neglect this issue. 7 years.

No lawsuit was filed. Unsure of what I should do next.