Services & pricing
Published flat fees. Confirmed in writing before the visit.
Same arborist and same price schedule as Urban Forestry Guide. Consulting fees are the only revenue; we do not sell or refer tree work, and we take no referral fees.
| Report | Price | Turnaround | Best for |
|---|---|---|---|
| Dispute Assessment Report | $850 to $1,250 for one to three trees between two properties; larger sites quoted | 7 to 10 business days after the site visit | Roots, limbs, debris, hazard and ownership disputes |
| View Obstruction Report | $950 to $1,650 depending on tree count and the city's claim format | 7 to 10 business days after the site visit | Oakland, Berkeley, Tiburon, Belvedere, Sausalito and other view-ordinance cities |
| Cause & Condition Report | $950 to $1,650 depending on what remains to examine | 7 to 10 business days after the site visit; 48 hours at a surcharge | A tree or limb has already failed; insurer or attorney needs causation |
| Desk Review | $250 | 3 business days | You have photos, a letter or a demand and want to know what you are looking at before paying for a visit |
| Neighbor Letter | $150 add-on to any report | With the report | A one-page letter on letterhead summarizing the findings and the requested action |
| Mediation, hearings, expert witness | $250 per hour; half-day minimum for deposition or trial; retainer required | Scheduled with counsel | Community mediation, city view hearings, small claims, civil litigation |
| Tree Appraisal (CTLA) | $850 to $2,500 via Urban Forestry Guide | 7 to 10 business days | Your tree was cut or damaged and you need its dollar value for a claim or Civil Code 3346 damages |
Prices as of October 23, 2026. Rush (48-hour) turnaround +$200. Travel included inside the seven core counties; $150 outside.
Dispute Assessment Report
from $850 one to three trees
The core report. One site visit from your property (and the neighbor's, with written permission), then a document that answers the questions the two of you have been arguing about.
- Ownership. Where the trunk stands relative to the apparent line, measured and photographed. Whether Civil Code 833 (one owner) or 834 (shared boundary tree) is the likely frame. No property-line opinion; that is a surveyor's job and the report says so.
- Species, size, age class, condition. Health, structure, defects, and what is normal for the species.
- Encroachment. Which roots and limbs cross, how far, and photographs from the ground and, where possible, excavation.
- Damage attribution. Whether the roots or limbs are plausibly causing the fence lean, slab lift, pipe intrusion or roof damage described, and whether another cause is more likely. Cause, not repair cost; a contractor prices the fix.
- Hazard. Whether the tree presents an elevated likelihood of failure, what the target is, and what would reduce it.
- Self-help limits. What you may trim or cut at the line, and what cutting would injure the tree and expose you to liability under the Booska v. Patel standard.
- Law and ordinance. The Civil Code sections and your city's protected-tree, heritage or view ordinance that apply, cited and linked.
- Recommended actions and hand-offs. What to do, in what order, and which parts belong to a contractor, a surveyor, an engineer or a lawyer.
Best for: fence, driveway, foundation and sewer complaints; overhanging limbs and debris; a tree the neighbor says is dangerous; a tree you say is fine.
Start this reportWhat the report deliberately does not do
It does not say where the property line is. It does not price the repair. It does not give legal advice or predict what a court will do. It does not recommend a tree company. Every one of those is a different professional, and a report that stays inside its lane is the one the other side's expert cannot pick apart.
Same report, either side
Tree owners order this as often as neighbors do. If you are being told your tree has to come down, the report either confirms a problem you need to fix or gives you a credentialed answer to hand back. See defending your tree.
View Obstruction Report
from $950
For cities whose municipal code gives a property owner a claim when a neighbor's trees block a view that existed when they bought: Oakland, Berkeley, Tiburon, Belvedere, Sausalito and others. Each ordinance has its own definitions, exemptions, required steps and preferred remedies, and the report is written to that city's standard.
- Photographic documentation of the view corridor from the primary living areas, with the obstruction identified tree by tree
- Species, height, growth rate and condition of each tree in the corridor
- Findings against the ordinance's stated standards and exemptions (for example, Oakland exempts coast live oak and bay laurel)
- Restorative options in the order the ordinance prefers: no action, trimming, thinning, topping, removal with replacement, with the arboricultural consequences of each
- What the claim must contain, so your initial written notice is complete the first time
Also used by tree owners who have received a view claim and want an independent read on whether the demanded work is reasonable or would harm the tree.
Start this reportCity pages
Oakland (OMC Chapter 15.52)
Berkeley (BMC Chapter 12.45)
Tiburon, Belvedere, Sausalito, Mill Valley: pages in progress; text us and we will walk you through the ordinance.
Not a view-ordinance city?
Most Bay Area cities have no view ordinance, and California has no general right to a view. The report then becomes a Dispute Assessment focused on hazard, encroachment and nuisance, which is what you can actually act on. We tell you which on the first call.
Cause & Condition Report
from $950 48-hour turnaround available
A tree or a large limb has already come down. The question now is whether the owner knew or should have known, because that is the difference between negligence and an act of God, and between the owner's insurer and yours.
- Examination of the failed section: decay, cracks, included bark, root plate, soil conditions, prior pruning wounds
- Pre-failure condition evidence from what remains, from photographs you or neighbors took earlier, and from aerial imagery where it helps
- Failure mode and contributing factors, including weather on the date
- Whether the defect would have been visible to a reasonable owner, and whether an arborist would have flagged it
- Written for the claim file: dated photographs, measurements, plain conclusions
Call before the debris is removed if you can. Once the stump is ground and the wood is hauled, most of the evidence is gone.
Text nowFor adjusters and public adjusters
Standard scope, standard format, dated photographs, measurements in inches and feet, no advocacy. Turnaround and fee are the same for any party. How we work with adjusters →
Desk Review
Send photographs, the neighbor's letter, the insurer's letter, or the demand. You get a written read within 3 business days: what we see, what the law usually says about it, whether a site visit and report are worth it. Credited toward a report booked within 30 days.
Start a desk review →Neighbor Letter
A one-page letter on Boundary Tree letterhead summarizing the report's findings and the action requested, written to be delivered by you. Neutral, specific, and easier to open than a lawyer's letter. Most disputes end at this step.
Add to a report →Mediation, hearings, expert witness
Community mediation attendance, city view arbitration, small claims testimony, and civil litigation support: document review, declarations, deposition and trial. Half-day minimum for deposition or trial. Attorney-retained work is billed to the firm under a signed retention letter.
For attorneys →Terms
- Fees are confirmed in writing before the visit. Reports: 50% deposit on acceptance, balance on delivery. Desk reviews and letters: paid at booking. Zelle or Venmo.
- Site visits are made from the client's property and the public right of way. Entry onto a neighbor's land only with that owner's written permission.
- Every report carries a limitations statement: visual assessment, no property-line opinion, no structural or repair-cost opinion, no legal advice.
- We do not sell, bid, or refer tree work and accept no referral fees from anyone.
- Reports are delivered as signed, numbered PDFs. Hourly work is invoiced monthly.
Questions people ask
Why does the Dispute Assessment Report start at $850 when a tree company will look for free?
Because the free look is a sales call. The $850 buys a certified arborist with no tree work to sell, a site visit, root tracing and measurement, photographs, the Civil Code and ordinance citations, and a document the other side will read. If you only want to know whether you have a problem at all, text us a photo; that conversation is free.
What moves the price above the minimum?
Tree count, parcel size, and audience. One or two trees between two houses is the minimum. Several trees, a slope, multiple structures, or a report an attorney will file in court takes more field and writing time and is quoted before the visit.
Is the appraisal (dollar value of a tree) included?
No. A CTLA appraisal is a separate report, priced $850 to $2,500 on Urban Forestry Guide. If your dispute needs both, we quote them together and do them in one visit.
How do I pay?
Reports take a 50% deposit on acceptance and the balance on delivery. Desk reviews and the neighbor letter are paid at booking. Zelle or Venmo. The fee is confirmed in writing before the visit.
Can my neighbor and I split one report?
Yes, and it often works well: one neutral report both of you paid for is hard for either of you to dismiss. Both parties sign the engagement and both receive the report.
Do you serve outside the Bay Area?
Core area is Marin, San Francisco, Alameda, Contra Costa, San Mateo, Santa Clara and Santa Cruz counties. Sonoma, Napa and Solano are quoted with travel.