You find the perfect commercial property in Nevada and move forward with your development plans. Construction blueprints get approved and financing falls into place. Then a survey reveals an easement running straight through your planned building location. Your entire project may need a costly redesign or could face significant delays.
Which ones can go unnoticed?
Several categories of easements can remain hidden until you start your development project. These include:
- Utility easements: Power companies, water districts and telecommunications providers often hold rights to maintain lines and equipment on your property. These easements can prevent you from building in specific areas or require you to maintain clear access zones.
- Access easements: Neighboring property owners might have legal rights to cross your land to reach their buildings or parking areas. These rights can limit where you place fences, gates or security features.
- Drainage easements: Stormwater systems and irrigation channels may run through your property. You typically cannot build structures over these areas or block the water flow.
- Prescriptive easements: Someone who uses part of your property continuously for a certain period might gain legal rights to continue that use. Nevada law may recognize these rights even without recorded documents.
Understanding these easement types helps you know what to look for during your property investigation.
Why easements slip through due diligence
Many buyers miss easements because they rely too heavily on limited information sources. For example:
- Title reports may not catch unrecorded easements or informal agreements
- Standard surveys sometimes omit underground utilities or historic use patterns
- Sellers might not know about easements created before they owned the property
- Verbal agreements between previous owners can create legal rights without paperwork
Thorough research before closing can help you dodge expensive real estate headaches after you take ownership.
Discovering easements after purchase can force major project changes and increase your costs substantially. It can be a good idea to seek legal counsel during your due diligence period. This can help you spot easement issues before they derail your development plans.