Easements Review
We previously looked at the reservation of easements and private roads in the Certificate of Owners. In this section, we review the easements on the face of the plat.
Checking easements can be one of the most tedious of the tasks in the review. To some extent the surveyor is dependant on the Title Company to provide a complete title report on the property. But the Surveyor must use their own judgment if it is apparent in the field that there may be an easement for a particular use, and be able to do their own research.
Something that may be apparent in the field is not always obvious on the drawing. There may be revised comments after the field inspection, if it appears that an easement may be missing on the plat. This is not to say it would be required, but the question should be asked.
Whether the easement is valid or appropriate to a specific situation will not be covered here.
Width Review
· Is the width of the easement dimensioned on the plat?
· If the width of the easement is not dimensioned on the plat, is it shown in the legend? If the width of the easement is shown in the legend, are there any other easements that could be confused with it, either by line type or different use?
· Can the easement be laid out on the ground with the information shown?
o If the easement is parallel to a line, is it dimensioned such that it is apparent that it is really parallel?
o If the easement in not parallel to a line, are the endpoints dimensioned, and are there enough dimensions on the line to locate it on the ground?
· Do the dimensions shown on the easement line scale to the values shown?
· Do the dimensions shown for the easement lines conflict with lot dimensions?
Purpose Review
· Is it clear what the easement is reserved for?
· Is it clear who the easement is reserved for?
Existing Easements/Right-Of-Way
· Is the easement or right-of-way shown as “existing”?
· Does the existing easement described in the record match the area shown on the plat as existing?
· Is it clear how the easement was previously created?
· If it is labeled with the use, does it match the use shown in the original reservation?
· If there is a recorded instrument number for an existing easement, has it been shown, and is it correct?
In reviewing the recorded instrument, we review whether the legal description that is usually attached really describes the area that is referenced, and whether there is any information in the recorded document that would conflict with what was shown on the plat. One example would be a recorded document shown for “exclusive use”, with an area shown on a plat for “public utilities”. The two are not compatible, however this issue is usually not under the control of the plat surveyor.
Last Revised: 1/14/2005 4:51 PM
Easements Review
We previously looked at the reservation of easements and private roads in the Certificate of Owners. In this section, we review the easements on the face of the plat.
Checking easements can be one of the most tedious of the tasks in the review. To some extent the surveyor is dependant on the Title Company to provide a complete title report on the property. But the Surveyor must use their own judgment if it is apparent in the field that there may be an easement for a particular use, and be able to do their own research.
Something that may be apparent in the field is not always obvious on the drawing. There may be revised comments after the field inspection, if it appears that an easement may be missing on the plat. This is not to say it would be required, but the question should be asked.
Whether the easement is valid or appropriate to a specific situation will not be covered here.
Width Review
· Is the width of the easement dimensioned on the plat?
· If the width of the easement is not dimensioned on the plat, is it shown in the legend? If the width of the easement is shown in the legend, are there any other easements that could be confused with it, either by line type or different use?
· Can the easement be laid out on the ground with the information shown?
o If the easement is parallel to a line, is it dimensioned such that it is apparent that it is really parallel?
o If the easement in not parallel to a line, are the endpoints dimensioned, and are there enough dimensions on the line to locate it on the ground?
· Do the dimensions shown on the easement line scale to the values shown?
· Do the dimensions shown for the easement lines conflict with lot dimensions?
Purpose Review
· Is it clear what the easement is reserved for?
· Is it clear who the easement is reserved for?
Existing Easements/Right-Of-Way
· Is the easement or right-of-way shown as “existing”?
· Does the existing easement described in the record match the area shown on the plat as existing?
· Is it clear how the easement was previously created?
· If it is labeled with the use, does it match the use shown in the original reservation?
· If there is a recorded instrument number for an existing easement, has it been shown, and is it correct?
In reviewing the recorded instrument, we review whether the legal description that is usually attached really describes the area that is referenced, and whether there is any information in the recorded document that would conflict with what was shown on the plat. One example would be a recorded document shown for “exclusive use”, with an area shown on a plat for “public utilities”. The two are not compatible, however this issue is usually not under the control of the plat surveyor.
Last Revised: 1/14/2005 4:51 PM