As a business owner, you have recently decided to expand your operation. You have purchased new real estate that you are going to use for your company. The location looks great, the price fits within the business’s budget, and it seems like everything is going to go smoothly.
But then you discover that the property has an easement. A nearby property owner has the ability to use that land in certain ways, even though they are not the landowner themselves. Are you obligated to uphold this easement as the new property owner, even though you are not the one who initially created it?
Does it “run with the land?”
It depends on the type of easement. In many cases, the easement is just a temporary agreement and will be terminated when the property changes hands. You may not have to honor an existing easement just because the previous owner agreed to it.
But some easements are said to “run with the land.” Perhaps the best way to think of this is that the easement is now part of the land itself. When that land is sold, the easement goes with it. If it has been set up this way, then you are still obligated to honor the easement after purchasing the property – and the seller should have told you that the easement existed in advance, allowing you to consider that fact when submitting your purchase offer.
Easements are just one thing that can make real estate transactions complicated. Be sure you fully understand all of your legal options at this time.