Rent Coach: My neighbor is blocking my private parking spot

Q. I rented an apartment recently in Park Slope and I pay an extra $250 per month for a private, off-street parking spot. 

My spot is accessed via a curb cut, which is painted yellow.  There is also a clear “No Parking” sign that can be seen from the street. 

Nonetheless, one of my neighbors regularly blocks 50% of my driveway with his car.  I’ve posted notes and confronted him personally, but he continues to do it. 

I’m so frustrated I don’t know what else I can do.  Any advice?

A. NYC Department of Transportation rules state that “no person shall stand or park a vehicle . . . in front of a public or private driveway.”  Your neighbor’s actions justify having their vehicle towed. 

However, the tow companies can’t remove the vehicle until it’s been ticketed for the violation.  You will need to call your local precinct or 311 or find a local traffic officer to alert them of the situation.

Once your neighbor’s vehicle has been given a citation, you can call your local tow company to remove the vehicle.  The tow company will bill the vehicle owner when they come to retrieve their car. 

Keep in mind that you don’t need to have the car towed if you don’t want to.  The citation may be enough for your rude neighbor to get with the program.

On a side note, if you believe your car has been towed for blocking a private driveway, call your local precinct for more information about retrieving it.  The maximum fee that can be charged for a car towed for blocking a driveway is $125 + tax and $15 per day for storage fees after three days. 

Mike Akerly is a New York City real estate attorney, landlord, and real estate broker. He is also the publisher of the Greenwich Village blog VillageConfidential.   

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