Could An Easement Affect Your Home Purchase Decision?
Posted on: 27 October 2021
Many of Australia's cities are densely populated, and it's little surprise that individual properties are so close to each other in these urban environments. Due to this complexity, it's no surprise to find that one property could impinge on a neighbour, and the owner may have certain rights that affect that adjoining lot. If you're in the process of buying a property here, what do you need to know about these rights and how they may affect you going forward?
Contract Encumbrances
In legal parlance, a restriction is known as an encumbrance — an agreement or an instrument that can affect or burden a specific property. An encumbrance may restrict how an owner can handle the land without the permission of whoever owns the agreement or instrument.
For example, a bank or other lender may attach the details of your mortgage to the title as an encumbrance. This gives the mortgage holder the right to take action against the property if you do not make payments when you are supposed to. To be effective, an encumbrance should be registered on the title of the property.
Relevant Easements
One of the most common encumbrances is called an "easement." These can be either registered or unregistered, and you should always be aware of their existence before you proceed with any purchase.
Registered Easements
An easement gives another party the right to access your property for one reason or another. For example, the house may share a walkway or a pathway and sometimes an access road. Another easement may give someone the right to park their vehicle on a section of land that is legally registered to your property. Sometimes, the party walls within a common building may be declared an easement.
Statutory Easements
Statutory easements do not have to be registered, but they are typically predictable. These easements are held by utility providers, such as telecommunications, water, sewerage or electricity. These bodies have the right to access your land at any time to repair, maintain or replace their installation.
Understanding Your Rights
You need to be clear before you buy any property and understand how an easement can affect you going forward. In truth, most of them are not burdensome, but they may nevertheless restrict your actions were you to become the landowner. As one example, you may not be able to plant a tree with a penetrating root network close to an underground utility pipe.
Working with the Experts
When you work with a registered conveyancer, they will do all of this discovery work for you. They will find out what easements exist and give you further advice before you proceed. Contact a local property lawyer to learn more.
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