Homeowner stunned after returning home to find neighbor's 'expensive mistake': 'Call the police and a lawyer'

Linz DeFranco (@linzdefranco) went to social media for advice in what she is calling #treegate.  

The TikTok video was reposted on r/treelaw with all the details.

@linzdefranco Any advice? I don't know exactly how many trees were cut down because they've removed all the stumps, but I can tell you it is over 100. #treegate #treelaw ♬ original sound - LinzDefranco

DeFranco, a Georgia resident and the wife of the popular YouTube News creator Philip DeFranco, broke down the situation, explaining that their neighbor came to them about wanting to build a retention pond that would require cutting down some trees on both of their properties.

The DeFrancos were clear that they did not want all of their trees cut down to maintain their privacy wall. The neighbor said they would mark the trees they wanted to cut down and would let them know before they did anything, assuring them it would only be a couple of trees.

After a year of nothing, they received a message asking for their approval to get started on the project. 

"And then one day I woke up to this complete and total destruction," the homeowner said.

DeFranco proceeded to show a picture of the back yard bursting with a beautiful wall of tall gorgeous trees and then in the updated photo, they're gone. Every single tree.

She went on with the saga, saying she sent an email asking what happened to the original plan and that they had no right to do this. They never signed anything.

The neighbor responded that the city said that's what they had to do in order to carry out the project. Determined to get to the bottom of it, DeFranco asked for the contact information of every single person working on the project. 

She contacted the homeowners association and asked a land surveyor to come out and stake the property boundaries. She told the neighbors they are not to set foot on their property again until there is a written agreement that they will fix what they did

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"I feel so violated and taken advantage of," DeFranco admitted in defeat.

In the original TikTok post, she wrote in the caption, "I don't know exactly how many trees were cut down because they've removed all the stumps, but I can tell you it is over 100."

Unfortunately, being a homeowner often comes with neighbors who can make life less than pleasant, especially when it comes to climate-friendly preferences like trees, gardening, and solar. From bamboo walls to unauthorized tree-cutting like these banana trees in Florida, who you share a property line with can be vital to a happy life. 

#Treegate received all kinds of responses across several platforms, and they all agreed that tree law in Georgia is serious business and to contact an arborist stat.

"If the city says that many trees had to be cut for the neighbor's plan, then the neighbor's plan should have changed. Call the police and a lawyer," one Redditor advised.

"On her Instagram she posted a mini-update, supposedly the surveyor said it was 'the worst encroachment he's ever seen,'" another shared.

"That was an expensive mistake," a TikToker wrote.

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