All Topics / Help Needed! / problem: easement on property… please help

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  • Profile photo of giladgilad
    Member
    @gilad
    Join Date: 2004
    Post Count: 64
    August 28, 2005 - 7:12 am

    Hi,

    my grandparents own their house outright but have a slight problem. There is an easement in the back garden – it contains their sewage pipes (whatever that involves)and both of the neighbours on either side. Should they consider to sell the property or build units, the easement will cause serious problems.
    My question is… can they make their neighbours rent that land from them?
    Or, the much preferred option would be to force both neighbours to move their sewage pipes and all on to their properties. Does anyone know who i should contact regarding this? do i have a case?

    thanks for your help,
    gilad

    Profile photo of theBuildingSurveyortheBuildingSurveyor
    Member
    @thebuildingsurveyor
    Join Date: 2005
    Post Count: 42
    August 28, 2005 - 7:37 am

    Thats what easements are for ( to allow people to connect to mains sewer, stormwater etc) yor granparents may own the land but do not have unrestricted rights over the easement. They should have known there was an easement there when they bought it. If the neighbors move their pipes they may not have anything to connect to as they main pipe is on your grandparents site. contact youir water authority to discuss.

    Profile photo of giladgilad
    Member
    @gilad
    Join Date: 2004
    Post Count: 64
    August 28, 2005 - 1:33 pm

    thanks for the reply.

    Obviously the easement was in place 15 or so years ago when they bought the property. My question is can they do anything now to get rid of it? or is it always going to be on the property?

    thanks

    Profile photo of LeilaLeila
    Member
    @leila
    Join Date: 2004
    Post Count: 63
    August 29, 2005 - 10:24 am

    Hi Gilad,
    An easement can only be removed by agreement with the authority the easement is in favour of (i.e. the ‘owner’ of the sewer mains). In order to remove an easement, it would have to no longer be required for its existing purpose, which sounds unlikely from what you’ve described.

    However, in terms of a site redevelopment, an easement need not be the end of the world – if it’s cost-effective (i.e. frees up a significant area of land) a developer may be willing to relocate the mains (if possible). Alternatively, it could be the area used for private open space. Finally, it is often possible to negotiate a buildover agreement with the easement owner. It’s worth discussing this with whoever owns the pipes. Good luck!

    Leila

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