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any thoughts on this?

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poor farm

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Long story short, my dad got a piece of equipment from neighbor 20+ years ago, totaly rebuilds it and used it. Time goes by dad sells me the farm 7 years ago, leaves his small line of this and that equipment on the farm, he passes away, now the neighbors son who now owns the neighbors farm says he wants back the piece of equipment that "we" borrowed from "them". Dont know what the arrangement dad and the neighbors dad had but figured after twenty years it doesnt make any differance anyway and we are not talking about anything more than $100 to begin with. Any thoughts?
 
Depends if you want a friendly neighbor or not. If you want a friendly one I would consider giving it back or asking if you could buy it. If you don't care about the neighbor (i.e. a royal pain in the neck/inconsiderate etc) then keep it and tell him too bad.
 
sounds like the kid wants it back now that its all fixed up and working. If it was still in bad shape he wont be asking. I'd tell him that after 20 years the ownership has been grandfathered to your dad and then to you. But thats my opinion. Dont want to be the bad neighbor.
 
sounds like the kid wants it back now that its all fixed up and working. If it was still in bad shape he wont be asking. I'd tell him that after 20 years the ownership has been grandfathered to your dad and then to you. But thats my opinion. Dont want to be the bad neighbor.
 
I've seen both sides. Dad let a cousin "borrow" a plow one time and he sold it. Then a neighbor had an old combine in a fence row. I thought he gave it to Dad for a parts machine,but it was better than the one he had,so he fixed it up and used it. A few years later the neighbor stopped and wanted the PTO and grain tank off of it.
Just use your own best judgement.
 
You might agree to return the tractor after your neighbor's son pays for the repairs.

Here's my story.

About a yr after my dad died, James and I made an 1800 mile round trip to Indiana and brought back his 1948 JD A. Tractor needed tires, magneto repair, and starter repair.

Then my two sisters decided the tractor was part of the estate, the tractor should be sold and the proceeds split.

I said fine. You come get it off my property, you go find out how much its worth and you sell it. But before any of that happens, we split the cost of going after it and the repairs. They backed off that demand real quick.
 
First off: Do you want the piece?

If so, I'd explain that my father put a fair amount of work/money into the piece, and that has to be accounted for. Explain to him that "borrowing" is for a limited time, but 20 years? No, the piece was "given" to your dad, he fixed it and used it. If they want it back, maybe you can come to an accomodation.

If you really don't care, just give it back. May make better neighbors.

Or not. That's human nature. Good luck!
 
How do we know that this was not payment or partial payment for some work or service that your father did for the one that he got it from?
Without the facts, no one knows the "deal".
So, by all rights, it stays with you unless he wants to buy it from you, especially since it has been restored by your father.
If he does not understand, then he is not worth keeping as a "good neighbor".
There are too many people today that operate on dichotomy. By that, I mean they will not accept the same terms that they expect others to follow.
I am betting that if the tables were turned, he would look at you like you had 5 eyes if you asked for something that had been in his possesion for over 20 years.
 
Tell him the same story, then offer to split it with him. $50 dollars ain't much for neighborhood harmony, that is unless this guy already has a "history".

Paul
 
After 20 years I would tell him "too late". BUT if he seems to want to get ignorant, then for that amount of money; give it back, put up a good fence and put your mind at ease. You own it now but don't let it own you.
 
It would really help to know what type of equipment is it? A lot of times people don't want to disclose what it is so it will seem less significant to others. Maybe your dad fixed it up so he could use it but otherwise it would have never been fixed? It's possible that the neighbors dad told your dad to just to take it if he wants to fix it. After 20+ years, unless there is something in writing, I think the neighbor's son is out of luck. Some kind of arrangement was made between your dad and his dad. He was not even in the picture at the time. Obviously his dad wasn't too interested in getting it back or he would have years ago. Maybe your dad did other work or gave the neighbor something in return? Without anything in writing, it's impossible to know exactly what transpired. If you have a need for it, keep it, if not you could consider giving it to the neighbor's son. That is if he could use it. He might want it back so he could sell it. Again, it does depend on what it is.
 
If you want it, have him prove it belonged to his family to begin with. I guessing after 20 years, that will prove to be impossible. Or, if you don't care about it, give it back as a reminder of why you don't do "favors" for this guy.
 
That is one of those very hard to figure out things. Did your father in fact borrow it or did he buy it or was it given to him??? Do either of you really know for sure on those points?? Is you neighbor a good friend or a guy you can care less about?? Is he just being a butt or is he or does he really believe your dad borrowed it??? Also what is it?? Is it something you want/need to farm with??? To many factors that you left out make it hard to say which way you should go on it
 
Tell him to pay for the repairs and storage. After twenty years this kid has got to be out of his mind. I think by law if you have it in your shop and it is not picked up in thirty days. It is yours to sell for the money you have in it. Mechanics lein.
 
My aunt borrowed a sausage stuffer from us that came from grandpa & grampa.

Mom talked about that thing every once in a while, didn't like it that it was never returned.

At aunt & uncles auction, there was the sausage stuffer. My sister bought it for $100. To give back to mom.

I overheard my aunt say to someone next to her, well if she knew my sis wanted it, she woulda gave it to her....

Funny how those things go. Kinda bad feelings simmering for 30 years, and really wasn't all that much to it.

I donno what is right or wrong, think it comes down to if you get along with the next generation neighbor or not. People get kinda funny in how they word things, wonder if he is looking at it as a family piece that would mean something - like he grew up with his grandpa working with him on the piece, or what his angle is. It's easy to assume the worst, and might be right, but maybe he's wondered about it for 19 years & finally got up the nerve to ask about it.

I donno. If you have no need for it, I'd give it back, but there are 100 details that could change my mind.

--->Paul
 
Was it something your dad should have returned and did not? For some reason the son knew it was borrowed. A lot depends on the relationship you want to have with your neighbor and the credibility each of you want to have with the other. Regardless of what your dad did to repair it if it was borrowed.
 
Well, you admitted it was theirs. Seems all the repairs have been used up by now so return it and thank them. Next week borrow it again.
 
Would the acquisition be listed in machinery for taxes and depreciation? If you still had the tax information from then it would show how much was paid, etc.

If not I'd probably just give the item back and chalk it up to experience and think about mumbling a "Sorry, I thought dad had bought it not borrowed it."

Sometimes it takes a strong man to be the better man, but you will always know.
 
Like I said earlier, it does depend on what it is. Your post is kind of misleading. On one hand you say it's only worth about $100 and on the other hand you stress that your dad "totally rebuilds it". If it's only worth $100, how much rebuilding went into it? What does the neighbor think it's worth? You could offer to buy it for half the value and both of you might be happy?
 
We had a similar situation with a grand piano that has become a family heirloom.

When my father-in-law and his sister were kids, their parents bought them a baby grand piano and arranged piano lessons for both. My FIL's sister showed no aptitude for, or interest in, playing the piano. My FIL, on the other hand, became an excellent piano player, played a piano in a dance band at one time, and became a church organist.

All of these years, the piano was in my FIL's possession. He paid for periodic tuning and upkeep. Time passed, both my FIL and his sister raised families, were eventually overtaken by old age, and passed away. As my wife is an only child, upon her parents deaths the piano was passed on to her. It is now in our house.

Now the interesting part. While a cousin of my wife's (the son of my FIL's sister) was visiting from out of state about 10 years ago, he made an offhand comment that he was glad we'd taken such good care of "his mother's" piano over the years. It was obvious he considered the piano his, with us merely being caretakers. Nothing further was said at the time, but I immediately talked to our attorney.

Our attorney's opinion was, "Possession is nine points of the law. The piano has been in your father-in-law's possession all these years, and now yours. Your wife's cousin has never once offered to share in the cost of tuning and maintenance. As far as I'm concerned, it's your piano. If your wife's cousin ever seriously tries to claim it, hit him with 60 year's storage at $1200 per year."

Didn't mean to get long winded, but assuming there was at least a number of years that your neighbor's father could have retrieved the item, had he felt he still owned it, I'd say the first thing you need to do with your neighbor is discuss the price of the repairs that were made and 20 year's storage.

I'd also say get it resolved soon. No point in letting it fester for another 20 years.

(Our problem solved itself when the cousin croaked fairly young several years ago).
 

I'd tell him to pack sand.But I never been accused of being a people person. If he was worth a dam, he wouldn't be asking in the first place.

Dave
 
I only read one coment, and decided not to go any further down the line.

I don't understand the question? It's not yours, and you know it? Seems simple to me what the right thing to do is, or should have already been done.

As far as rebuilding it for the use of it? If the total value is $100.00, seems like a sweet deal for your dad.

Unless you can prove your dad did purchase it with a canceled check or recipt I would haul it back to him with a smile, and a hand shake.

Any idea what a good neighbor is worth in the future?

You can tell the personalities of each of these posters as they coment, and you can sort out the ones you probably should not do business with.
 
I agree 100% with TRADITIONAL FARMER and IOWA NORTHEAST.

Asking for storage or even splitting the cost of repairs is absurd. Maybe he should charge you $500 a year for rent on whatever it is....

Offer to buy it, or happily return something that isn"t yours, and hope you returned it in as good as shape or better...

I can"t believe the amount of self-centered responces you got, some crappy neighbors out there I guess
 
My dad loaned a piece of equipment to an acreage owner/friend 10 or so years ago and won't ask him to return it even though I could have used it for parts and even offered to buy it from my dad. The other guy used it once and it sits in his yard, he talks about needing to return it now and then. If my dad died, it would be returned pronto even if I had to go get it myself.
 
Thank him on behalf of your dad for the use of his dad's equipment.

Tell him the equipment can remain on your property until it is convenient for him to come get it.

Do not use the equipment, don't move the equipment, and don't ask him to come get it.
 
We're only getting one side of a 20 year old story here...

You say the implement was "given" to your father by the neighbor.

The neighbor's story is probably quite different. Odds are he remembers your father coming over asking to borrow this implement, and the expectation was that the implement was to be returned.

I'm not saying you're lying or anything like that, but your memory of events may have changed over 20 years, as theirs may have.

Perhaps our father, after discovering how much repair the implement needed, and performing that repair, decided he would keep the implement in "payment" for the repairs without telling the neighbor?

Borrowed tools have been sitcom fodder for decades.
 
Your dad 'got' it; the usage should have been worth the price of the rebuilding. Last KNOWN owner seems to be the neighbor; carry it home already.
 
I would say at this point only the neighbor claims to know what the deal was between your dad and his. I would return it with a smile and make the statment, I hope there are no hard feelings, I didn't know it was yours. Then you walk away knowing you done the right thing since you truely don't know who it belongs to or what the deal was. The neighbor is wrong for asking in my opinion, that was his dads business to take care of not his but he has to answer for that not you. If you return it nobody can bad mouth you and it makes you the better man. Good luck.
 
Gotta go against ya on this one. When my dad died a few years ago, I was the one running around picking up equipment he had loaned out over the years. Most I found was in terrible shape. One neighbor paid for half of a green river corral they had been using. Then there was the silage wagon we loaned about 20 years ago. I was told it was shot, so they didn't think it was worth them buying from me! Really?!? Can I borrow your new pickup for 20 years? If I am hard on it, shouldn't be worth me paying for when I'm done!
 
(quoted from post at 09:56:16 06/02/10) Well, you admitted it was theirs. Seems all the repairs have been used up by now so return it and thank them. Next week borrow it again.
Click to expand...
Maybe he typed it too fast (I'm a slow reader), but I only read that his dad "got" it. If I got something 20 years ago, I bought, traded , or it was a gift. Otherwise, I borrowed it.
When we bought our place, it was 4 years after the lifelong owners had died off. I guy showed up and claimed a sandstone tank (for lack of better words) about 300 gallon. Real heavy and in my way. I called the two previous owners and they said the guy tried the same with them but couldn"t prove it.

I said OK and he showed up witha crew and a small backhoe type bobcat to get it. They tore up some stuff taking it out and when they were loading it on the truck, busted it in half. That lie cost theold guy about 3000 bucks and an ugly (patched) tank in an old garden plot. He died a few months later, so should be answering for his deeds. Talking to locals over the years, he would go to all new buyers claiming stuff.

Dave
 
This thread reminds me of my post splitter, which I haven't thought of in 2 or 3 years. Built it 30 or so years ago when we were still using black locust for fence posts. It's made just like my 3-point hitch wood splitter, except it'll split a 7 ft post. A friend (acquaitance might be a better word) borrowed it......been at least 12 and maybe 15 years ago. I haven't needed it and I know where it is. I know it's mine and he knows it's mine, but if he dies tonight, his kids are probably gonna assume that it belongs to the estate. His neighbors also know who it belongs to...........
 
(quoted from post at 20:55:04 06/02/10) Gotta go against ya on this one. When my dad died a few years ago, I was the one running around picking up equipment he had loaned out over the years. Most I found was in terrible shape. One neighbor paid for half of a green river corral they had been using. Then there was the silage wagon we loaned about 20 years ago. I was told it was shot, so they didn't think it was worth them buying from me! Really?!? Can I borrow your new pickup for 20 years? If I am hard on it, shouldn't be worth me paying for when I'm done!
Click to expand...

i guess thats why roger welsch says not to loan your tools unless you dont want them back or want them back broken
 
Well the deal is with it is I dont know if dad "borrowed", "bought", or "bartered" for this. The thing is he is gone, and it was over 20 years ago and if they indeed wanted it where were they years ago? I guess I wasnt clear when saying about its worth, it was worth less than $100 BEFORE my dad totaly rebuilt it (his investment was probably 6-700. I dont know whats fair but I do know that if someone else bought my farm that we wouldnt be having any conversation about it. 2nd part is that it was the mans son not the origanal owner that feels he is entiled to it. Also am thinking what about a statute of limitations?
 
(quoted from post at 15:03:34 06/02/10) Well the deal is with it is I dont know if dad "borrowed", "bought", or "bartered" for this. The thing is he is gone, and it was over 20 years ago and if they indeed wanted it where were they years ago? I guess I wasnt clear when saying about its worth, it was worth less than $100 BEFORE my dad totaly rebuilt it (his investment was probably 6-700. I dont know whats fair but I do know that if someone else bought my farm that we wouldnt be having any conversation about it. 2nd part is that it was the mans son not the origanal owner that feels he is entiled to it. Also am thinking what about a statute of limitations?
Click to expand...

You're sounding just as bad as your neighbor now........ Maybe you're both crooks and should just flip a coin to see who comes out on top. What is the equipment?


Dave
 
Give it back! Ill will with neighbors cost more than $100. If you need it, offer to buy it. If your dad rebuilt it and used it 20 years he got his money's worth. Give it back!
 
Possesion is nine tenths of the law if the neighbor cant prove your dad took it without permission he cant say much if he wants it he can pay for it
 
You"ve said nothing about the neighbor"s Dad- is he also gone? Subsequent message, you say your Dad put in 6-700 to restore it. Add in 20 years of usage. ($2.70/month) Bottom line, neither you nor the neighbor kid have anything invested in it. Sounds like there"s a grudge involved, maybe two.....maybe many. Donate it to a charitable consignment auction!
 
How does he know you borrowed it as opposed to buying it or getting it given? There are a lot of variables here. I've had more than one crook try to get me to let them have something that my dad supposedly borrowed. Wrong, dad has every cancelled check back to 1958 and he and I knew eachothers business inside and out. On the other hand, if you know it was loaned the rest doesnt matter. Give it back. The rest doesnt matter. I've had to do a thousand dollars worth of work on something I borrowed before just to get to use it. Thats why my dad never borrowed anything and why I dont now either, and try to not load anything.
 
Legally, I'd say it's yours to do with as you please. Now, if it was me, I'd deliver it straight to his door. Better to settle it now, than to let it fester.

No doubt your neighbor was told every day for the past twenty years that your father borrowed the equipment and never returned it.
 
You still haven't said what "it" is or how you came up with the $100 value. It's just as much up to him to prove it was loaned as is for you to prove it wasn't. What it is could make a big difference. Why are you so reluctant to say what it is? Maybe it's something like the JD 330(?) someone was commenting on a couple years ago? They were bragging how cheap they got it because the widow didn't know how rare and valuable it was. Please tell us what it is in order to give you a better opinion.
 
Do you have a bill of sale? Can you prove it was purchased? Why all the mystery of what it is in question?? Sounds to me like you are looking for justification in keeping it.
 
We are on the same wave length. Either looking for justification to keep it or knows what the answer would be if he said what it is. Maybe the poor farm handle is intended to sway the opinion? I don't know but he needs to tell us exactly what it is to get a proper response. I'm thinking it may be more than just a simple implement.
 
I've got a good friend - 81 years old and not in very good health - who loaned out a real nice Dobro to another guy I know. He's asked him to return it now for over a year, and the guy drags his feet. I think he expects to "inherit" it when old Bob dies.

Some people have absolutely NO conscience.

I plan to raise a stink if Bob dies before the Dobro gets returned.

Paul
 
Thirty years ago when I was starting farming I needed a manure spreader to use. A neighbor bought one at a sale for seventy-five dollars. It had good sides and beater but the floor was bad. He came to me and said if I wanted to fix it we would share ownership. So I replaced the floor and several years later the floor chain. I spent five or six hundred dollars. That I did not mind because at the time neither of us spread twenty loads of manure a year, it worked for us both.
Flash foward ten years. I had out grown the spreader. I told the neighbor to just come and get it and it was his totally. So he did, no problem. A couple of years later he came to me and said that the old spreader was broke. He asked to use my two year old one. Again no problem, after all he had helped me get started. This went on for the next six years.
He passed away. His "city" kids came to settle the estate. They filed a claim with the probate court judge on my spreader for half!!!! Not the old spreader but the one I bought new. I had to get a lawyer and prove ownership.
Two things happened because of that: 1)I WILL NEVER OWN A PIECE of equipment with anyone again, including family. 2) That old line fence that I shared with the new "city kids" owners. I demanded that it be replaced, like it should have been many years before, did not want to put a hardship on the old man. The new fence plus the cleaning out the old one came to just shy of fifteen thousand for their half. That spreader deal cost them.
 
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