Dead Cable Line in Back Yard

[mishibaba]

We are planning to purchase a home in Sewickley, PA. The home has a dead cable line running in the backyard. The current owner mentioned they tried to contact the cable company to have them remove it, but the company mentioned that they owned the line and do not want to remove it, incase they need to use it in the future.

Since I plan to purchase the home, what can I do to ensure that the dead cable line is removed? We still have a week before the 2 week contract ends. Please help!

[LandSurveyor]

If it is in an existing easement, there is very little you can do about it if the cable company wants to leave it as-is.

[mishibaba]

Thank you for your quick response. How do I find information on the easement(s) for the property?

[LandSurveyor]

The easement, if any, can be listed in a wide variety of places, but only one existence, if legal, is required.

You can look for the original plat or survey creating the lot you are considering and any subsequent surveys or replats.

However,

Since you are planning to purchase the home, you can simply require the seller to provide the information to you in the form of a title search going back to the time of the creation of the parcel itself. Unless you specify otherwise, a residential title search may only go back forty years or so and miss general utility easements, etc. You need that search and opinion and it should be up to the seller to provide it.

Finally, just out of curiosity, why would an abandoned cable be a problem, whether it was in an easement or not? If you are planning to build over it, you definitely want that title report in hand before making a purchase commitment. It's part of due diligence for anyone purchasing real estate today, particularly foreclosed property.