Nice exotic location and cool plans! Your neighbor's oak tree might need to be "taken care of" before it get way out of hand.
My next door neighbor neglected to trim 1 of his trees before he moved out earlier this year. As a result of N.C.s last snow/ice storm half his tree broke off onto his roof and the other half: inches from my driveway. B/c he no longer lives there/around here... I took care of his tree.
Hasta la vista! shhh
Now, I'm curious to see what your front yard looks like without trees. Taken down to the ground or out completely?