Redditor Finds 60 Cars Parked on Their Property for a Local Festival, Then Discovers What Organizers Have Been Doing

Add The Daily Dot to GoogleRedditor Says Festival Uses Their Property for Parking

A Redditor who goes by the username u/OutsiderMotif is asking for legal advice after discovering that a local festival in Indiana has been using their property as an official parking location. According to the post in r/legal, the festival advertises the address on its website and charges attendees $10 to park there. The homeowner wants to know what legal options they have to stop it. The post has received 8,100 upvotes and 1,800 comments.

The Redditor explained the situation in the post, writing, “I bought a small house with an adjoining half-acre grassy lot in February. The lot is part of the same parcel as my house, and I have a survey from the purchase showing the boundaries. There's an annual fall festival about two blocks away. I was out of town last Saturday when my neighbor texted me a picture of about 60 cars parked on my grass. At first I thought people had just helped themselves to parking because the lot was empty.”

However, the lot's emptiness wasn't the reason people were parking there. The Redditor learned that the festival had apparently been using the property for years with permission from the previous owner. The new owner, however, had never agreed to let the festival use the land, much less charge attendees to park there. The parking also reportedly damaged the property.

The homeowner added that the event is hosted by a nonprofit organization, but that hasn't stopped them from wanting the situation addressed.

“Here's the part I'm really concerned about: the festival continues next Saturday, and they're still advertising my address as an official parking location on their website. I've emailed them demanding that they remove my property from the parking arrangements. No response yet,” the Redditor wrote. “I don't particularly care about the money they collected, although it feels pretty outrageous that they profited from my land. I want the property repaired and I want this to stop.”

They turned to Reddit to ask what legal options were available to them and whether the festival could continue using the property for parking without their permission.

Many commenters sided with the homeowner and argued that the festival's nonprofit status did not exempt it from responsibility for the situation.

“Being non-profit doesn't give them an escape from liability. Having permission from the previous owner does not give them permission with the new outside any contracts that may be present, which should be disclosed on the sale of the property. If there is a contract, and it wasn't disclosed then the previous owner may be liable,” one person wrote. “Demand compensation for the damage done. Have receipts if you can. If they can't pay, sue in small claims. Even if they spent the money, that's not your problem.”

Another commenter suggested clearly marking the property as private and warning the festival that unauthorized vehicles could be towed.

“Quick fix….post private property, no trespassing/no parking signs. Violators will be towed, etc. Inform the festival people they'll have to make other arrangements and your land is now off limits. Also let 'em know anyone parking there will be towed. Get an estimate for repairs. Figure out if you want to go after them for the money or not,” they advised.

Overall, commenters largely supported the homeowner and encouraged them to document the damage, make it clear that the property was off-limits, and explore their options for seeking compensation.

The Daily Dot was unable to independently verify the claims made in the post, which are based solely on the author's account shared on Reddit in r/legal.

Share on FacebookShare on X (formerly Twitter)Share on RedditShare on PinterestShare on BlueskyHaleyHaley Van Horn is a writer and editor with nearly a decade of experience in lifestyle, entertainment, and culture stories. She has contributed to publications like PEOPLE and Parade, and her work is preserved in the Library of Congress.

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