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  1. #1
    Join Date
    Dec 2007
    Posts
    1

    Default Who Can Access An Easement

    I purchased 2 1/2 acres in IL. When that land was purchased we were told that the road that runs along the west side was part of the property we purchased. We later found out that when the 10 acres in the back of me was purchased in 1903 a 10ft strip along the west side was sold for a private road. It is specifically stated on all deeds as the property was sold. I am the 4th owner of this south 10 acres. Now this 10 acres and my acreage where my house sits came out of a 40 acre plot.On the original deed when the 20 acres was sold state that the man was buying 20 acres except for a 10 ft strip on west side. My 2 1/2 acres where my house sits came out of this 20 acres.I now own the 10 acres in the back and the 10ft strip. We purchased it back in 1997. My neighbor on the west side is selling his place which is on 10 acres. His east side runs along the west side of my property. Now the new owner wants to build a shed on the back part of his property expecting to use my lane to get back there. He has a driveway off the main road so he is not landlocked.He does not want to use his concrete driveway and take the chance of tearing it up and plus he said that he does not want a road running thru his back 5 acres. The prev owner says that the road has always been a shared road and he says that it gives him access to the back part of his 10 acres.The new owner had a previous owner file an affidavit that states that there has been an easement that runs between the 2 properties for over 80 years so the landowner in the back could reach his property but according to all legal documents he did not need an easement because he owned the road leading to his acreage.They did not purchase the land being landlocked. Also she stated that her family owned both pieces of land and the easement was always there. I have people researching the court records but there is no easement to be found. She also said that the road was equally owned and shared by her and her father who lived beside her. I don't see how that is possible when the property owner in the back had a 10ft strip running between the 2 properties right down the west side section line. If anything until I purchased the land in the back I was using his property to access my driveway which until recently I thought I owned from the very beginning. We did not even catch on to the fact that until we purchased the back property that we did not own the lane. When we purchased the 2 1/2 ACRES we were told that the property line was a treeline that divided our land from the lady that owned the land west of us. She then sold her land to her son and he sold it to a couple in 1997. They were told when they purchased the land that the property line ran right down the middle of the road which was the 10ft strip that was sold when the back 10 acres was purchased.Do I have to allow this new owner access of my lane so he can get to his back property? Could I put up a gate or fence to keep him out?

  2. #2
    Join Date
    Sep 2005
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    Behind a Desk
    Posts
    98,846

    Default Re: Who Can Access An Easement

    Okay.... That's a huge block of text and it's difficult to parse, and I stopped reading part way in. If you buried important details in it, try clarifying the situation while using paragraphs.

    You say the strip was deeded to somebody as a private road. The holder of the deed for that strip owns it.

  3. #3
    Join Date
    Dec 2007
    Posts
    5

    Default Re: Who Can Access An Easement

    (Sigh). Landowner, you're dealing with lots of possibilities here, but (and no disrespect meant) your history needs to be set out in a clearer timeline (as Mr.K suggested, a paragraph at a time), starting with the 40 (assuming the 40 abutted the public road) and going thru the parcels split off, etc.
    You're also unaware of the considerable differences "minor" points of real estate language can make:
    "...10' strip sold for a private road..." could mean the actual ownership of the strip was sold, OR could mean the strip was sold for road purposes, which would PROBABLY be a road easement (it's the "for road", or "for road purposes", or such language, that can make the difference, which is a major difference.).
    You have people searching the records: Unless they have property searching experience, they may not know what to look for, or know what's wheat and what's chaff...
    And unless they have experience in your local Courthouse, they may not know where or how to look...

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