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What should be included in a drainage easement?

By James Craig

What should be included in a drainage easement?

The drainage easement may include a culvert or drain which feeds into a drainage system or the easement may simply state that runoff needs to be allowed to flow freely over an area of the property.

How many easements are there in South Australia?

Easements. About one in 10 properties in South Australia contain an easement. An easement is a section of land on your property which gives someone else a legal and specific right to use or access that area of land, even though they are not the owner. Easements often include shared driveways, rights to park a vehicle, or the right for utility …

Where can I find easements on my property?

Buyers can usually find the necessary information on the location of any easements on the property title. What are the different types of easements? An easement is the right over another person’s land for a specific purpose, but what are those purposes? One example is a carriageway.

How does the surface drainage rule benefit landowners?

This rule may promote development of land by protecting landowners from liability for altering the land in ways that change surface drainage. But it also may encourage landowners to divert surface water in ways that most benefit themselves without considering how those actions affect other properties.

Does drainage easement affect property value?

How much a drainage easement affects a property’s value depends on the severity of the drainage. If the area of the property that captures drainage from adjoining properties constitutes only a small portion of the total property’s size, the effect on the property’s value will be less.

Who owns a drainage easement?

The person who owns the easement is the only person who can make repairs, or be responsible for the damages caused by the drainage on the easement. If the property owner also owns the easement then the property owner is the one whom is responsible for the upkeep and the issues with the drainage.

Can you put a structure on an easement?

You usually can’t build a permanent structure where an easement runs, even though the land is yours. For instance, if you build a permanent garage on land used by the utility, you might be interfering with the easement holder’s usage rights.

What is an utility/drainage easement?

Drainage easements are considered encumbrances on the title of a parcel of property. These easements, as well as any other utility or land use easements, will be described on the title for the property and/or plat.