Easements

[dora2]

What is the name of your state? New Jersey

When we purchased our home, we purchased it using a driveway that is not ours (to the right of our home-vacant lot next door). The driveway that belongs to our home is on the left side of our home but our neighbors have an easement to use it because they have no driveway at all. What I need to know is if we can never obtain an easement for the driveway we've been using, can we turn the existing easement into a common driveway. (The easement is part of our property). What exactly are our rights to this piece of property? If you need more info, please let me know. Thanks.

 

[dora2]

Maybe I made that too complicated. Our neighbors have an easement to use our driveway. We use another driveway to get onto our property. If we ever had to, would we be allowed to use our driveway(the easement) to get onto our property? Or does it now belong exclusively to our neighbors even though it is our property? What are our rights to this property? A little off the subject, but are we responsible (lawsuit) if anything happens to them on that driveway? If so, should we get something drawn up stating that they use this easement "at their own risk"? Thanks.

 

[HomeGuru]

Read the actual easement agreement or document that is recorded on title. The easement area is actually your property that you gave a right to the neighbors to use for purposes ingress/egress. Thus, you should be allowed to use your own property unless the easement agreement states otherwise.