Q: A shared alley separates my Staten Island space from my neighbor’s. The valuables line runs down the center of the alley, so we every personal part of it. A gate attaches the 2 houses. My neighbor put a padlock at the gate, and has no longer given me a key. So I don’t have any get admission to to my assets from that facet — I will’t get admission to the air-conditioning condenser and gear. I’ve written to my neighbor soliciting for a key, however she has no longer spoke back. What can I do? If I want to make maintenance on that facet of my space can I minimize the lock with a bolt cutter?
A: You’ll be able to minimize the lock if it’s proscribing get admission to on your assets. However first, give your neighbor the good thing about the doubt. In all probability she neglected the letter and doesn’t know that you’ll’t get admission to your individual assets. Knock on her door and ask her if she gained the letter. Ask for a spare key, and take it from there.
If she doesn’t reply, or if she rebuffs your request, write a 2nd letter. Ship this one qualified mail so you might have a file that you simply despatched it, mentioned Eric D. Sherman, an actual property attorney and a spouse within the New york place of job of the regulation company Pryor Cashman. Give an explanation for that you wish to have get admission to on your assets and would love a replica of the important thing by way of a suite date. When you don’t obtain a key by way of the closing date, inform her that you are going to minimize the lock and substitute it with a brand new one.
“If the closing date passes and you continue to haven’t heard anything else, reducing the lock turns out cheap below the cases, so long as you give a key on your neighbor,” Mr. Sherman mentioned.
Come with a replica of the unique letter with the second you ship her, in addition to the important thing for the brand new lock that you simply plan to put in so that you don’t have to visit the difficulty of writing her once more if you need to exchange the lock.
Then again, prior to you placed on a brand new lock, make certain that the gate will have to be locked in any respect. If a software meter, for instance, is at the gated facet of certainly one of your properties, it’s surely conceivable the gate wishes to stay unlocked.
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