a question for home owners

onetrackmind

onetrackmind

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I'm not sure where to go with this problem so i figured id ask around cag to see if anyone can maybe lead me in the right direction.

About two weeks ago i closed and moved into a house. I kept noticing my dogs were coming in with mud all over there stomachs and paws so i went out in the yard and realized that half the yard was basically a swamp. I figured it was due to the rain we were having. Then I noticed yesterday after several days without raining that the back yard was as saturated as it was before and the water was literally flowing in my yard. I noticed the house behind me which is on a hill and is new construction constantly has the sprinkler running and it runs down the hill and floods my yard and my neighbors yard.

No one lives there so i cant get ahold of anyone, it also doesnt have a for sale sign either so i dont know who to contact with the problem. Anyone have any suggestions?
 
[quote name='BodyShot213']You live in the Ghetto? How is there a vacant house? I would call the city.[/QUOTE]

no i dont live in the ghetto, its a house that was just finished being built... i imagine they dont have a buyer yet or the people havent moved in yet. I figured id have to call the city but i was looking at which department i should contact.
 
[quote name='Miller2847']Do you know who built the house? You could try and contact the builder and see if they could help.[/QUOTE]

Thats why i was looking at the front of the house for a for sale sign but there isnt anything and i never see anyone there, obviously someone comes and turns on the sprinker but i never see them. I have the address and i took pictures of everything yesterday.
 
First, congrats on the new house.

Second, do you live in a specific neighborhood? If you do, a lot of time the same management/builders will build all the houses in the area. So you might try and contact the people/management that built your house.


Also, is there grass in your/your neighbors/the house on the hills' yard? I know that flooding can be a common problem with new houses/apartment complexes when they are first built because there is no grass to slow the flow of water when it rains. If not, you'll probably have this problem until the grass comes in.

And when the new owners move in, I doubt they'll keep the sprinklers on all the time, because that can get expensive.
 
[quote name='GuyWithGun']First, congrats on the new house.

Second, do you live in a specific neighborhood? If you do, a lot of time the same management/builders will build all the houses in the area. So you might try and contact the people/management that built your house.


Also, is there grass in your/your neighbors/the house on the hills' yard? I know that flooding can be a common problem with new houses/apartment complexes when they are first built because there is no grass to slow the flow of water when it rains. If not, you'll probably have this problem until the grass comes in.

And when the new owners move in, I doubt they'll keep the sprinklers on all the time, because that can get expensive.[/QUOTE]

Thanks bro! Well heres were its kinda tricky... the neighborhood has been around since the early 50's a lot of the houses are older and a few are being torn down and newer bigger homes are being built. They dont have any grass at all, just alot of mud with random spurts of grass all over the place.
 
Call the city (or township) and talk to someone in the building department. If that doesn't work, hire an attorney to write a letter to the builder or property owner.
 
Yeah, your city's (or subdivision) planning or building commission can either look into it or direct you to the developer. It's something that probably needs to get fixed because the ground is obviously not graded properly.

We had a similar problem with my parents' new house... a different developer did the house next to them and their yard was three feet higher in the back, so the back corner of our yard was a puddle. The other developer had to come out and lower their yard and build up our yard a bit.
 
[quote name='botticus']Yeah, your city's (or subdivision) planning or building commission can either look into it or direct you to the developer. It's something that probably needs to get fixed because the ground is obviously not graded properly.

We had a similar problem with my parents' new house... a different developer did the house next to them and their yard was three feet higher in the back, so the back corner of our yard was a puddle. The other developer had to come out and lower their yard and build up our yard a bit.[/QUOTE]


[quote name='machine']Call the city (or township) and talk to someone in the building department. If that doesn't work, hire an attorney to write a letter to the builder or property owner.[/quote]

Thanks guys! I appreciate the advice. I do have a level lot so the situation sounds pretty similar.
 
Are you sure it's not your own septic system backing up? I have heard this happening. I'm not sure how much water a sprinkler can produce to cause flooding, unless it on 12 hours a day, 7 days a week. Good Luck.
 
[quote name='Number83']Are you sure it's not your own septic system backing up? I have heard this happening. I'm not sure how much water a sprinkler can produce to cause flooding, unless it on 12 hours a day, 7 days a week. Good Luck.[/QUOTE]

Yeah im sure, i was standing at the fence yesterday seperating my yard and the others and i could see all the water running down the hill and going into my yard and my neighbors yard. You also have to understand that the house is on a really large steep hill which is also the culprit of why im getting a flooded yard
 
You can go to your city hall and look up deeds and you will be able to find out who owns the property. It is public record so anyone can look it up (just like in the next few weeks you will start getting an assload of mail that will tell you you pay too much in mortgage on your home (and they will even tell you how much you took out).

Congrats on your new home btw...

Also, i agree with the poster above... just go turn off the sprinler, lol...
 
Congrats on the home. I think the sprinkler could be on a timer so you can't assume someone is coming by every day to turn it on. Have you tried asking your neighbors to see if anyone knows the builder's name?

That would really piss me off, but at least it's not flooding your basement. (Yet...)
 
Could be a septic or sprinkler problems that others have mentioned. Are you on city water, or run off a well. To check all this info on your property you need the abstract deed. The courthouse, or previous owners should have a copy of this. It is important to have it anyways as it gives a lot of info on your property.
 
Man, I just saw a thing on the news yesterday on how to plant whats basically a water sponging garden for this exact situation but I cant recall what they called it. If I could remember I'd google it for you.
 
Yeah if nobody is there they won't even see you do it. It's not like you're destroying or defacing their property in any way either. Long term though you should still talk to somebody about putting some type of barrier or drainage ditch between the properties or you might have this problem every time their is heavy rain.
 
My parents had this exact same problem when a neighbor decided to redo thier back yard.

Basically get a camera and take pictures of the damage and where you think the water is flooding in from then go down to city hall. The city may require them to install (at their expense) a drainage ditch to help reduce flooding in your backyard.

you might have some problems since you moved into the house recently and they could claim this isn't a recent problem, in which case you might have to bring a suit against the previous owners of your place for not providing full disclosure.
 
install a french drain or complain to the builder. if its under construction, they should have a permit posted on the structure. they are causing problems for your property and they are required to remedy the problem. if all else fails contact a lawyer.
 
If the hill is as steep as you say it is then theres a chance that your yard will still flood even when the sprinklers are off and a good rain comes along, if I were you iwould dig a trench out for water to run off.
 
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