Wow,what a difference.The lowest tree in the second photo is actually thirty feet back from my fence. The close trees are all limbed up forty feet or so...

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This pointedly shows why you should study the mature size of trees before you plant them in proximity to a house.
Thirty feet might not make much difference but when cutting major roots, it can cause major damage to the tree's ability to take up moisture and nutritives.
There is a formulae you can use as a guide to do it.
Measure up the trunk 4', take the diameter of the tree in iches there. Multiply that X 3 and that is the number of feet out from the trunk its is safe to cut roots.
Feeder roots don't matter much, they replace themselves in no time, but its the major roots that do matter.
The tree's balance is affected by what roots on one side of the tree are removed. This could cause dead branching on that side which affects the overall look of the tree.

If the trees on your neighbor's side of the fence is ...say 10" diameter, the 30 feet you say it is back of the fence would be the minimum distance you can expect to safely cut the roots on your side.
If you measure the circumference instead, divide that by .pi or ....3.1426

The cut boughs can be later used this fall to make a great cushion for insulation of roses on top of the winter protection you give them and snow completes the insulation.

The idiots who bought the house new in 1952 are who circled their yard with Douglas Fir trees when they really wanted an arborvitae/cedar hedge. Doug firs are native here in Oregon and they can grow to hundreds of feet tall. Completely unsuitable for a hedge.....At least ten have been removed since we bought the house in 1994. The idiot topped several of them which severely damages them and makes them unsafe in wind. Two of the last topped ones were the first to be removed yesterday.

I've never cut any roots but feeder roots. I don't want those sixty-eighty foot tall trees falling on MY house. The trunk diameters are a lot bigger than 10" I could not get my arms around them if I were to hop the fence to the neighbors side....

The cut boughs went into a giant chipper. The new owner hired a tree service. They used a crane to remove two of the bigger trees.

I'm so pleased for you; I know those trees have been a hindrance to growing clematis. I shudder to think of what it must have cost them to have the trees removed. We've had about 5 taken out here and it cost hundreds of dollars. Ours weren't as tall as those firs, either. In any case, you're looking forward to a nice summer next year. Congratulations.

I'm sure it cost thousands. The crane was impressive. I should have taken pictures. A guy climbed up to the top of the tree, hooked the cable to it and then cut off the top. The crane lifted that section down to the street then they did it again. Some of the branches were ten to twenty feet long radiating out in all directions so you can imagine how big these sections were. These weren't little Christmas trees!

These trees have also clogged our gutters, made having a lawn in back impossible and shaded the backside of our house so that we had to use lights during the day in all of the rooms.

I have enjoyed the squirrels but they also made it really easy for raccoons and they have done nothing but damage.

I'm doing the happy dance.

What a difference with the light streaming in.

Julia

Definitely an improvement, sunlight!

I took the photos before they were done. They took out the two closest to their house and left the those closest to my house.....only the four limbed up ones next to my fence in the photos were left.

The difference in light even on cloudy days inside my house is just huge. Having a reduction in fir needles/cones and catkins on our roof and in our gutters is going to be big too.

Rain is actually reaching the ground too. It almost never did before. I had to water that bed year'round.

Buyorsell, I am thrilled for you! I have the same problem with my neighbour (although not to the same extent as you did), and would just love it if they decided to drastically limb up or preferably, remove, some of the huge trees in their tiny yard. Oh well, maybe one day....

Judith