Hi folks,

I live in a 12-unit condo building. My immediate neighbor and I are on the top floor of a three-storey building and we share a rooftop deck. We each own our half of it.

The deck was built in 2014. We stained it the following year. We wanted a color that would reflect the direct sunlight. We used a stain called Benjamin Moore Arborcoat Premium Exterior Stain Classic Oil Finish (Semi-Transparent):

https://www.bimobject.com/en-us/benjamin-moore/product/benjamin-moore-328

We chose a color called Bradstreet Beige.

Since I knew how tricky staining is, I took my time staining my half of the deck. My neighbor, on the other hand, unfortunately was rushed with time when she did her half of the deck. And she didn't really stain, it was really painting. I tried to point this out, but unfortunately let's just say that I wasn't successful.

The result is that her half of the deck has been peeling off over the years.

In any case, she sold her condo this year.

The new owner wants to re-stain it (her half of the deck). I do not want to re-stain my half since it's still pretty decent. Also, I don't have the budget nor time for it since I have other urgent renovations to do.

Furthermore, the new neighbor wants to use a different color for her half of the deck. It will be a bit darker than the color that's already there.

Since my deck and that of my neighbor are joined on the back end, I'm just wondering how my neighbor is going to stain her half without interfering with my half.

We have not yet drawn the line that separates our decks in the back (where they are joined), although we do have the deck plan on paper.

I'm just wondering. For example, what if the dividing line goes through the middle of a deck board on the floor? What if it goes through a baluster? Will it mean each of these items will have two different stain colors?

Excuse me, if all this sounds dumb but I've never done this before and my neighbor has not mentioned any of this. I'm just trying to get a feel for a way forward.

I'm attaching some photos to help you see how the decks look like (they were taken on a rainy day so the decks may appear more worn out than in reality. But also keep in mind that as rooftop decks they get pounded with sunlight and snow). The first photo is of my deck (taken from the back, the white door leads into my kitchen); second photo shows my neighbor's deck which is the one on the left side; third photo shows the back of both decks which is where they are joined; and fourth photo shows the chimney, which is not in either deck but the middle of the chimney marks the dividing line between the two decks (so the chimney is an important marker. The door on the left is the fire egress).

If any kind soul has any suggestions, I'll be really grateful.