Legal Question in Real Estate Law in Wisconsin

Easement ownership

The 1st clause in our Abstract of Title, states: 'Recites: EXCEPT that Grantors reserve an access easement for purposes of ingress and egress over the south 32 feet of the above fore-mentioned property.' There have been approximately 5 exchanges-ownership. The 1st mention of easement states: '...(describes location.)...EXCEPTING the South Thirty-two (32)feet thereof over which Vendors retain access easement for purposes of ingress and egress. Next statement regarding easement is for owners prior to use purchased. Same statement except the word Grantors replaces the word Vendors appears. I u/s ingress and egress. We have an adjacent owner had his land surveyed and surveyor posted stake with words that read south end of border. I have told him repeatedly that we own the land, he thinks he owns the land. Can you tell who is owner using this data?


Asked on 11/30/04, 2:26 am

1 Answer from Attorneys
John Sinitz, III Sinitz Law Firm LLC

Re: Easement ownership

There is not enough information to determine who owns the land using the data you have provided.

It sounds like you are describing an �Appurtenant� or �Access� easement. With an Appurtenant easement there are 2 parcels of land involved. The parcel over which the easement runs is the �Burdened� estate. The parcel that gets the use of the easement is the �Dominant� estate. The party that owns the burdened estate �owns� the land over which the easement runs. The party with the dominant estate only has a non-possessory right to use the land over which the easement runs. You need to determine which parcel you own AND whether or not the easement still exists.

There are many different types of surveys. Not all surveys identify easements. If you have your land surveyed make sure to instruct the surveyor to locate the boundary to your property AND to locate of all easements affecting the property.

Read more
Answered on 11/30/04, 10:27 am


Related Questions & Answers

More Real Estate and Real Property questions and answers in Wisconsin