If you are considering buying or selling a Los Angeles home, you need to be aware of the possible impact an easement could have on the property’s value or on a buyer’s impression of the property. An easement is a encumbrance on the title of the property and indicates that a third party has been granted the right to use a defined area of the parcel for a general or specific purpose        

There are many types of easement, both as a permanent arrangement and a limited-time agreement, and the most common ones are the: 

Right-of-way

  • allows a person(s) to travel across the land of a Los Angeles homelos angeles home.                        

Public entity

  • gives utility companies and/or local governments the right to install power lines, sewers, and water mains, etc.    

Other easements

  • provides pathways across pieces of property
  • forbid the blocking of a view
  • permit public access to a beach or park
  • allow use of a neighbor’s driveway
  • grants rights to preservation organizations
  • limit types of development on/of the land     

While in most cases easements extend only along boundaries and have little effect on the value of your Los Angeles home, it is important to determine that they do not affect the general use of the property or place any burden on the owner of that land. Owners and would-be buyers should 

1. Be aware of what easements apply to the piece of real estate

2. Understand exactly what the easement allows and/or prohibits and

3. Possibly obtain an appraisal of the value of the easement.       

Although most easements “run with the land” or pass forward to a new owner, it is sometimes possible to remove them through legal action, such as a quit claim deed or execution of a release agreement by all parties involved. Consult an experience real estate attorney to explore these actions as well as to confirm the presence, scope, and implications of any easements on the property of your home.