Am I responsible for the leaves from my tree that fall in my neighbor's yard? This is a great question that I think we all could use some clarification on.

For the past ten years or so, I've had to deal with this exact scenario. My next door neighbor's tree just borders my backyard fence, so every fall, his leaves fall into my back yard. We're talking bags and bags of leaves.

Whether it's my next door neighbor's tree or not, I've been raking those darn leaves for ten plus years now. And I will tell you this, I HATE RAKING LEAVES!!!!

I decided to look into this because I'm sure there are many people in the same boat. If my leaves fall into my neighbors yard, does that make me responsible for them?

And the answer to that question is NO!

According to homeguides.sfgate.com, when leaves fall from your tree and create debris in the yard next door, you aren't legally responsible for cleaning it up. Your neighbor might find it annoying, but they can't make you clean up that debris in their yard. It would be nice if you could help your neighbor out when it comes to raking leaves, but that's your choice.

In homeguides, it states:

Under the law, falling leaves are considered a natural product of trees and not something for which the owner of the tree can be held liable.

Homeowners, whether they own the tree or simply live next to it, are responsible for the cleanup of natural debris that enters their yard, no matter the source.

Now you know!

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