Easements and Rights-of-Way

One of the more boring subjects in real estate is a toss-up between easements and rights-of-way.



However one of the most important subjects which can impact both "use" and "value" of any type of real estate are these two elements.



Many home sellers and home buyers never read their deed, never study a recorded plot plan of their property let alone be concerned with "easements" and " rights of way."



Yet both are deadly serious and most binding; they are an impediment to the land.



Easements come in three forms: Overhead, Surface and Underground.



Overhead easements are those most of us see and know: overhead electric or telephone lines.

Surface easements: This pertains to the right to pass and re-pass over the land.

Sub-surface and the hidden ones:Easements for water & sewer mains or natural gas underground lines.



Some property owners may discover they have these as well as additional easements impacting their property: conservation easements and slope easements ( for water run-offs).



Most, but not all easements are in a property's deed of record! That's the problem. An adjoining property owner may have a deed which is properly recorded in a Registry of Deeds and which contains the " right to pass and re pass" on a neighbor's land!



It might be a right to "cut timer," or use an adjoining property to transport cut trees or even ice.



The only way to insure against this is to have an attorney prepare a perimeter title search: researching the deeds of all adjoining or contiguous deeds.



This is very, very expensive and the reason why most people settle for a simple lot title exam.

However if you are purchasing a large tract of land, or a portion of a mega- track of land you'll be wise to bear the expense of a "perimeter title search."



Rights-of-way are just another term for generally " surface easements."



Where the headaches come in is that if your property is subject to an underground easement, such as water, sewer or gas, you cannot build over the easement except at your own risk. The holder of the "easement rights" has the authority to maintain the sub surface element even if means the destruction or removal of your improvement.



Another headache is when you think that you have an extra building lot or lots only to discover that the vacant land is subject to "restrictive easements."



Another factor to keep in mind is that "easements" have a value to the "holder" or owner of such easement encroachment. Sometimes a public utility may approach a property owner offering to pay a minuscule amount of money for an easement.



The property owner needs to ascertain what will be the negative impact to the owner's land potential or subsequent land use. At that juncture it's recommended to obtain a "before and after real estate appraisal" by a licensed experienced appraiser.