Access to land-locked property

[jnthns]

What is the name of your state (only U.S. law)? California

Howdy,

I want to purchase a parcel that is owned by a private party. The current owner bought the land from Barnum Timber company about six or eight years ago, and the reason Barnum gave for originally selling the land was that it is isolated from the rest of the 47K acres they own farther North. The parcel is land-locked and the road that passes through the property is not a public road. There is a "reciprocal forestry road easement" by and between Barnum Timber company and Hawthorne Timber company and recorded with the county. I called Barnum and asked about access to the property and they stated that their policy is to deny road access to such properties (haven't heard back from Hawthorne). Since Barnum sold the land to a private party, is it actually legal for them to now deny access to the land?

Jonathan

 

[justalayman]

barnum owns, or owned, the lot, correct? They had an agreement with Hawthorne to be able to access the lot, correct?

Just what do you expect Barnum to do to provide you access? They cannot make Hawthorne provide an access.

Now, whether it is legal for them to sell a lot without an access I do not know and haven't checked your states laws. How do the current owners access the property now?

 

[jnthns]

barnum owns, or owned, the lot, correct?

Barnum sold the property, so they no longer own it.

They had an agreement with Hawthorne to be able to access the lot, correct?

Yes.

Just what do you expect Barnum to do to provide you access? They cannot make Hawthorne provide an access.

I certainly don't expect them to make another company do anything. But I did ask them about getting access to the property and they didn't say "Ask Hawthorn Timber, we have nothing to do with those roads." Rather, they implied that they have the right to refuse access. The road is long and it's possible that the gated end of the road IS on their property. Since Barnum stated that this parcel is isolated from the rest of their land, and the easement names Hawthorne Timber, I am assuming that Hawthorne owns the surrounding land, hence the easement.

Assuming they have some control of the road, the question is, because they sold the land, isn't there a reasonable expectation that the new owner, or any subsequent owner, has the right to access the land?

How do the current owners access the property now?

I don't know.

 

[tranquility]

The concept of land locked property is much harder than you'd think. You really need to speak to an attorney who specializes in property law. It can be a really technical area because there needs to be a tracing of ownership in many cases just to see if the issue applies.

But, everything found in the tracing will be from public records. The only assumptions the law will make is that you knew what the public records said and knew what was in the contract you signed. There is not going to be a good "reasonable expectation" argument.

 

[justalayman]

Rather, they implied that they have the right to refuse access.

makes no sense. If they no longer own the property and another entity owns the surrounding property, why even ask Barnum about access? It would seem they have nothing to do with the situation. It would be whomever is the servient tenant of any easement that allows access to the landlocked property that would be of concern.

 

[154NH773]

Back up just a little.

There is a "reciprocal forestry road easement" by and between Barnum Timber company and Hawthorne Timber company and recorded with the county

You need to know what the actual wording of this easement says. Get a copy and have it examined by a land use lawyer to determine if it is an appurtenant easement or an easement in gross. In other words, did it just benefit Barnum, or does it extend to any future owner of Barnum's land.
You have the possibility of going to court to obtain an easement by necessity if no actual current easement exists. The fact that there was an easement may make it easier for you to obtain one by necessity.
You should also do some research on prior owners of both properties to see if there was a common owner at some point and if a prior easement may have existed. If you can't do it yourself, a title company can do it for a small fee.

You say that you really don't know who owns the property through which the access road runs. Stop assuming and have a title search done. Barnum is out of the picture now, they can't advise you one way or the other.