Understanding water access and how easements work will allow you to understand more about real estate and how it can change the property value. Easements related to water happen all the time and a Deed of Grant usually takes care of this issue.

What is an Easement?

The first thing to know is what an easement actually is. It's a way of granting the owner of one piece of land - or a utility company or other entity - to be able to do something on land owned by another person. The landowner must use the land as described within the easement. A water easement, specifically, may grant a person access to water sources, water lines, and/or drainage that is on property owned by another person.

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How Easements Work in Real Estate

A water easement is documented on the title for the person who owns the land as well as the person who will have privileges to use the land as determined within the easement. Some of the most common easements include:

  • Access to install/maintain/service water lines

  • Allows for drainage of water/sewer

  • Access to a lake or other water source

There may be laws associated with the easements and this depends upon the type that is being documented. There are also rules that must be followed. For example, if there is an easement that talks about drainage, the landowner cannot do anything that would affect the natural drainage system, such as grading the property. If they were to do that, it would affect the drainage of other properties.

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How Easements Impact Real Estate Values

Real estate values are going to vary when there are easements in place, and it will depend upon whether it is the land in which easements are granted or the easements are in place for the homeowner to use another person's property.

For the person who owns the land which needs to be used by another, the value can potentially go down. This is because they have to make concessions due to what their property has or where it is located. On the other side, the person who is using the easement will often benefit because of being granted access to the water resource or other aspect of the property.

The good news is that there are laws in place that allows the person who owns the land the right to enjoy a peaceful environment and the ability to develop their land because it is still their land. When there is an easement in place, it's also important that it transfers from title to title during the sale of a property. This will ensure that there are no issues. Easements transfer until they are legally dissolved, which is yet another thing to keep in mind. Road construction and other things going on could potentially cause an easement to dissolve, though it still needs to go through the necessary legal protocol. Learning more about the presence of an easement prior to purchasing real estate is important to ensure there will be no bigger issues going forward.