How Can Easements Affect My Real Estate Investment?

 Posted on August 14, 2024 in Commercial Lease Agreements

When investors purchase real estate, they focus on many important factors that affect the value of the property. Location, interest rates, appreciation potential, property type, and the real estate market as a whole are just some of the details real estate buyers study.

However, there is another element that often goes overlooked: easements. An easement is the legal right of someone to access a property that he or she does not own. This can affect both the value of the property and the owner’s use of it. Sellers should disclose any easements to prospective buyers, though this does not always happen. Hiring an Illinois real estate lawyer is the best way to protect your assets and interests when investing in real estate.

What Is an Easement?

An easement grants property access to someone who does not own it. One of the most common types of easements is a utility easement, which allows utility companies to build infrastructure like water pipes and telephone poles on people’s private properties as necessary.

Real estate investors should also be aware of other types of easements, such as:

• Easement appurtenant: This allows someone who owns a property adjacent to yours to access your land in a specific way, like to pass through to a public road. The property of the person seeking access is called the dominant estate, while the property being accessed is called the servient estate. An important element of an easement appurtenant is that it is tied to the land and will remain regardless of who owns the property.
• Easement in gross: Unlike an easement appurtenant, there is no dominant estate with an easement in gross. Instead, this kind of easement is granted by the property owner to someone else for a specific purpose and period and is not tied to any property. This means a new property owner can rescind the easement.
• Prescriptive Easement: A prescriptive easement is when someone has an implied right to access a property. If a person has been openly accessing someone else’s property in an obvious way for at least 20 years and the property owner did not object, the person can ask a court to grant a prescriptive easement. This grants the non-owner to continue accessing the estate.
• Conservation Easement: This is a voluntary easement in which a landowner grants property access to the government or an organization for environmental purposes, such as preserving natural resources, making the property available for recreational or public use, protecting historic or cultural aspects, or using it for agriculture. A conservation easement can be terminated if both parties consent.

How Can Easements Affect My Real Estate Investment?

Easements can affect the value of a property, though some more than others. For example, a utility easement might not impact a property’s value if it does not interfere with or otherwise impact the use of the estate.

However, buyers might not want to purchase land that has easements. This is especially true if it is hard to terminate the easement, like an easement appurtenant. For example, if the owner of the dominant property drives his truck multiple times a day through the servient property because there is no other option, it can be an unattractive buy and lower the value of the estate.

Contact a Naperville, IL Real Estate Attorney

Easements can seriously complicate a real estate investment without the right real estate attorney. At Lindell & Tessitore, P.C., our extensive experience in real estate law and strong customer care allow us to provide our clients with unparalleled services. Let our excellent attorneys fulfill all your legal real estate needs. Call 630-778-3818 to speak with a skilled Oak Brook, IL real estate lawyer today.