Water from neighbors

We have water in the ceiling of our townhouse that appears to be coming from our neighbors. We’ve tried to gently talk to them about some possible fixes but they’ve not been receptive to even engage in discussion about it. Any thoughts?

yesbrooklyn

in General Discussion 6 years and 1 month ago

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stevecym | 6 years and 1 month ago

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sorry, I just reread this and realized the key word, “townhouse”. I was thinking an apartment of sorts. roofing is not my thing, but I will say, most of these buildings have common brick walls between them that rise above the roof line, so I would not suspect the neighbors. there is one thing perhaps, maybe the wall has a void in the masonry and it is running through that common wall and into your house? I can say this, we one time had a leak in a building that appeared in one office but when we followed it back, the water was entering on one side of the building and traveling like 25 feet on a beam and then dripping off onto the ceiling where it left its mark. it too a lot of detective work the find the leak and I was kind of surprised we did. another thing, and we have this problem in our own house though I have since taken care of it: we have a gutter at the back of the house. the roof folds into the gutter and the water rolls off down the lip and away in the gutter. when the gutter clogs, the water rises up and goes between the roof membrane and the structure and runs down the inside exterior wall until it appears in our kitchen a full floor below. again, leaks are tricky. this one I fixed by applying a membrane with roofing cement along the edge of the roof and gutter. I have to inspect that annually though and you should inspect your roof and the flashing joint along the masonry. it would not hurt to look over onto the neighbors roof and if you see something funny take a picture. by the way, for those wondering. those of us who have taken care of commercial real estate are told we have to inspect the roof every 90 days. I know that because I was made to do it but like everyone else on here, I only inspect my own roof annually when I clean said gutter.

resident2 | 6 years and 1 month ago

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Water runs in mysterious ways; but generally speaking it is not too often that you will see a leak from a neighbors roof in your property without a very obvious condition: IE their chimney needs sealing / pointing etc. Or their leader is running across your property. The party wall parapet is falling down or has flashing issues.
Why do you think it is coming from your neighbor?

stevecym | 6 years and 1 month ago

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I took care of a condo complex in north Carolina after college. we often got calls about wet spots in the bathroom ceilings and it always turned out to be a cracked shower joint in the apt above. in our case there was a systemic problem; the buildings were stacked prefab units and as they settled, the shower joints cracked. It was a problem the owner’s association viewed as a property wide issue and took responsibility for but my point is, leaks from the plumbing above occur with frequency. the op has to find a way to say that to the people upstairs and that may involve cutting the ceiling open as it is probably not something as simple as their neighbor’s sink overflowing (unless it is a leaking lav or kitchen drain or faucet connection, it will not be visible from upstairs). that was the way we as property managers had to work with the leaks we were experiencing as it did not appear that any of the tenants were the cause of the problem.

tricky though, how do you make them move it you do find the problem is theirs?

dorkofwindsor | 6 years and 1 month ago

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Hello, your post is extremely general.

“appears to be coming from our neighbors” —> you will need to do better to make someone care about your problem. Furthermore as a homeowner I would not be convinced (and probabably slightly annoyed) if my neighbor brought this up. How can I specifically cause water damage in your ceiling if your roof is properly waterproofed and I have no water damage?

Have professional proof before “gently” suggesting your neighbor is the problem (and therefore it their liability). Then raise it one final time with a copy of the formal conclusion, and if no response then have a quick letter sent by your lawyer. If you do have to force it to be their problem you’re going to have to have a professional opinion regardless.

Arkady | 6 years and 1 month ago

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Get an engineer to identify the particular problem & show it to them. If they’re still not willing to do anything, maybe try DEP for a hazardous condition.