Found Enroachment before closing

 Hi, All,
We are buying a tiny single family house. Escrow closing is sheduled
next Tuesday. This week's survey found out the property wall encroached
into the neighbor for about 1 feet. The seller's agent is talking with
the neighbor.

My realtor said that most likely the neighbor will acknowledge this and
require "no action". I am little worried. What if at first month after
the closing, the neighbor asks us to take down the wall? The cost will
totally fall on me.

Is there a better term to protect us? In this case, is escrow on our
side?

Thanks,
Hong

  You should be asking this of your lawyer.

 
And this folks is why we do surveys.  :-)

This situation absolutely calls for the counsel of an experienced
consumer real estate attorney to handle in a way that won't leave you
exposed.  They typically work on reasonable flat rates (less than $500
I've found round here) for handling property transactions and are
bound to have your best interests in mind....unlike "your" realtor who
doesn't get paid of the sale doesn't close and has financial incentive
for you to not make too much of a fuss.

This could be a major problem, or a minor problem.  It all depends on
the neighbor.  Honestly, I don't see your closing happening next
Tuesday, and as a buyer I would be in no hurry to push for it to
happen if there's an encroachment issue.  

Best Regards,
--
Todd H.  
http://www.toddh.net/

 The realtor said I could be well-protected by an encroachment agreement
with the neighbor. Is it ture?

 
Neighbor wrote:

May or may not be true.  If you hire your own expert it will be.  What
is your peace of mind worth over the next 20 years if you take the
realtors word?  Have him show you a sample of the agreement and take it
your lawyer.

Harry K