Looking at land or a home in Hanover County and seeing the word “easement” in the listing or plat? You are not alone. Easements can help your plans or limit them, and the difference often comes down to what is recorded and where it sits on the property. In this guide, you will learn what easements are, how they affect building and resale, where to verify them locally, and the key steps to take before you write an offer. Let’s dive in.
What is an easement?
An easement is a legal right for someone to use part of a property for a specific purpose, without owning it. Common examples include access drives, shared private roads, and utility corridors. Easements are different from ownership and different from covenants or restrictions.
Two types matter most when you buy:
- Appurtenant easement. This benefits a specific parcel and usually transfers with the land.
- Easement in gross. This benefits a person or company, like a utility, and may not transfer with the land.
Rights and control basics
- Dominant vs. servient parcels. The parcel that benefits is dominant. The parcel that carries the easement is servient.
- Exclusive vs. non-exclusive. Exclusive rights can limit how the property owner uses the easement area. Non-exclusive rights allow broader owner use.
- Temporary vs. perpetual. The recorded document controls duration. Some easements expire or have conditions to end.
Common easements in Hanover County
You are likely to see these on rural and acreage properties, and sometimes on suburban lots:
- Ingress and egress access easements. Let you travel across private land to reach a public road.
- Shared driveway easements. Two or more parcels use and sometimes maintain a single drive.
- Utility easements. Power, gas, telecom, water, or sewer lines. These often allow clearing and limit structures or trees in the corridor.
- Drainage or ditch easements. Control water flow and keep channels open for maintenance.
- Conservation or open-space easements. Voluntary restrictions that can limit building, subdivision, and certain land uses.
- Railroad, pipeline, or other rights-of-way. Narrow but high-impact corridors with safety and setback rules.
- Easements by necessity, implication, or prescription. Created by circumstance or long use, not by a written grant.
How easements affect your plans
Easements can be helpful or limiting. Focus on these impacts before you commit:
- Use restrictions. Many recorded corridors forbid structures, fences, or trees within the easement. Some require permission to change anything.
- Building and septic placement. A corridor across your planned homesite or drainfield can force a redesign or make a lot unbuildable.
- Maintenance obligations. Who pays for grading, gravel, snow removal, culvert repair, or gate upkeep? The recorded language should say. If it does not, expect potential disputes.
- Access certainty. A clear, recorded access easement can make a landlocked parcel usable. Vague or unrecorded access is a major risk.
- Financing and title insurance. Lenders want recorded, reliable access and defined rights. Ambiguous easements can slow or block loans.
- Resale and marketability. Long utility corridors or permanent conservation restrictions can shrink your future buyer pool.
Where to verify easements in Hanover County
Do not rely on a listing note or a sketch. Confirm details with these local sources:
County records and maps
- Hanover County Clerk of the Circuit Court. The official place for recorded deeds, easement agreements, and plats. Review the chain of title for express easements, releases, and maintenance agreements.
- Hanover County GIS and assessment maps. Useful for visualizing corridors and rights-of-way, but not a substitute for recorded documents or a survey.
- Real Estate Assessment Office. Get parcel IDs and legal descriptions to support your records search.
Surveys and plats
- Existing recorded plats. Look for easement notations, building setback lines, and legend notes. Confirm that the plat is recorded.
- New ALTA or boundary survey. For acreage, an ALTA/NSPS survey is the gold standard. It maps exact easement locations and any encroachments so you can plan your house site and drive.
Title and legal review
- Title search and commitment. Read the easement language listed in the exceptions. Note who benefits, the corridor’s width and location, and any maintenance terms.
- Title insurance. Policies typically exclude recorded easements but protect against certain undisclosed defects. Ask what can be insured or removed.
Local agencies and providers
- Planning and Zoning, plus Building Inspections. Confirm that access meets permit standards and that easements do not block your proposed home, septic, or setbacks.
- VDOT. Driveway or entrance permits may be required to connect to a state road, even with a private access easement.
- Utilities and line locators. Verify overhead and underground lines, pole locations, and allowed uses in utility corridors.
- Conservation holders. If a conservation easement exists, the holder will have the recorded restrictions and approval process.
Buyer checklist before you write an offer
- Get copies of the deed, plats, and all recorded easement documents from the seller or listing agent.
- Obtain the most recent survey or order an ALTA/NSPS survey showing easement lines, widths, and any encroachments.
- Review the title commitment and read every easement in the exceptions. Confirm who benefits and who maintains.
- Verify access. Make sure it is recorded, adequate for your intended use, and not subject to termination that could landlock you.
- Confirm maintenance duties for any shared drive or private road. If silent, proceed with caution.
- Check VDOT requirements for entrances on state roads and confirm any needed permits.
- Ask neighbors about long-standing shared uses that could signal unrecorded or prescriptive rights.
- Contact utility providers to confirm existing easements, line locations, and use limits.
- Check for conservation easements that may limit building or subdivision.
- Engage a Virginia real estate attorney if language is unclear or if access, septic, or utility issues could be deal breakers.
Hanover County scenarios to watch
- Shared private road for several rural lots. Confirm the road’s legal status, whether VDOT accepts it, and how maintenance costs are allocated.
- Access across a farm field. Consider seasonal access, gates, and turning radii for delivery trucks and emergency vehicles.
- Utility corridor on timberland. Clearing rights can affect trees, future landscaping, and timber value.
- Parcels with conservation easements. Expect permanent limits on structures, subdivision, and some land uses.
- Driveways with no maintenance clause. Silent documents are common and can create costly disputes later.
Can easements change or end?
Sometimes. Easements can be created by written grant, recorded plats, necessity, or long use. They can end by written release, merger of ownership, expiration under the recorded terms, abandonment, or court order. Relocation usually needs the easement holder’s consent or specific relocation language in the recorded instrument.
Move forward with clarity and confidence
You do not have to guess your way through easements. With the right records, a clear survey, and focused questions for title, utilities, and county offices, you can protect your plans and your budget. If you want a local partner who handles land and acreage details every day, reach out to Brian Walinski. Let’s review your target property, map the easements, and build a clean plan from offer to close.
FAQs
What is an easement in Hanover County real estate?
- An easement is a legal right to use part of a property for a specific purpose, like access or utilities, defined by a recorded document or by long-standing use.
Can you build over a recorded utility easement on a Hanover lot?
- Usually no. Most utility easements restrict structures and may allow clearing or access. Any change generally requires the easement holder’s consent.
How do you confirm legal road access to a Hanover parcel?
- Check the recorded easement documents at the Clerk of the Circuit Court, review the title commitment, and verify any VDOT entrance requirements.
Who pays to maintain a shared driveway easement in Hanover?
- The recorded easement or a separate maintenance agreement should assign costs. If silent, expect shared responsibility to be negotiated and potential disputes.
Will lenders finance land with an access easement in Hanover County?
- Often yes, if the easement is recorded and clear. Ambiguous or extensive easements can complicate valuation, loan approval, and title insurance.
