Stand at the back fence and look over it at the lot next door: knee-high grass gone gold, dead brush leaning on the boards, none of it cut since spring. On your side, a mown strip and the corner of the house.
Most people read that one of two ways: their lot, so nothing can be done, or your fire risk, so you will end up cutting their side. California’s defensible space law answers both.
The job that is yours sits on your side of the fence: checking and clearing the first five feet around your own walls, and pricing that with a local pro…