Michelle_F
Junior Member
What is the name of your state (only U.S. law)? New Mexico, San Juan County
I need to know if my understanding is correct. If a rural road is designated as a private drive, the property owner through which it passes can deny others access. If it is a deeded access road, they may not deny access to the adjoining property to which access is granted by deed. Correct? This is how I am interpreting it from internet seaches and the discussion with the clerk who helped me at the county recording office this morning.
A little more detail about the current issue-
We purchased our property 1 year ago. It is not located directly on the county road. There is a 1.5 acre parcel between us and the county road to the west. The access road runs beside the utility easement (also deeded) and is deeded to two other properties to our northeast and runs through our neighbors land to the north. When we moved in, there were two drives, but one had obviously not been used in a while. We used a drive that came through a good portion of the northwest corner of the neighbor between us and the county road. That neighbor had expressed interest in fencing off his property for horses and asked if we could go back to using the deeded entrance. No problem. We finished it up 2 weeks ago. We had to place a culvert pipe for natural water shed and to accomodate the drop off that was now there due to road build up and easement washout within the utility easement area. This morning, the neighbor to the north had placed a t-post dead center of our deeded access with a note claiming it is a private drive and he denys us access. (He is not even the property owner. His father in CA is.) We had already been to the county records office and were told the NE corner was the deeded access in January, but I went back today to make sure there were no miscommunications. It is clear that our access is out of that NE corner and our title further states that we are granted a "Twelve (12) foot wide access and uility easement whose centerline is described as follows:
BEGINNING at a point which is South 08 57'26" West 13.04 feet from the Northewest corner" and further goes on to describe the length of access road we have ("437.59 feet to a point on the East right-of-way line of an existing County Road and the end centerline") The other two properties NE of us have similar access wordings and there is a documented survey from 1977 when all 4 properties were one 6.61 acre lot that lists the drive as an "access road" as well as another survey from 2006 of the neighbor furthest up the hill stating the drive is an access road. The records office could not find our recorded survey, but until the 90's, they were not required to be filed with the county and we have not formally had one in the time that we have been the owners.
(my apologies for the length of my explanation)
That said, does the neighbor to the north making an issue of our deeded entrance actually have any right to deny our access?
I need to know if my understanding is correct. If a rural road is designated as a private drive, the property owner through which it passes can deny others access. If it is a deeded access road, they may not deny access to the adjoining property to which access is granted by deed. Correct? This is how I am interpreting it from internet seaches and the discussion with the clerk who helped me at the county recording office this morning.
A little more detail about the current issue-
We purchased our property 1 year ago. It is not located directly on the county road. There is a 1.5 acre parcel between us and the county road to the west. The access road runs beside the utility easement (also deeded) and is deeded to two other properties to our northeast and runs through our neighbors land to the north. When we moved in, there were two drives, but one had obviously not been used in a while. We used a drive that came through a good portion of the northwest corner of the neighbor between us and the county road. That neighbor had expressed interest in fencing off his property for horses and asked if we could go back to using the deeded entrance. No problem. We finished it up 2 weeks ago. We had to place a culvert pipe for natural water shed and to accomodate the drop off that was now there due to road build up and easement washout within the utility easement area. This morning, the neighbor to the north had placed a t-post dead center of our deeded access with a note claiming it is a private drive and he denys us access. (He is not even the property owner. His father in CA is.) We had already been to the county records office and were told the NE corner was the deeded access in January, but I went back today to make sure there were no miscommunications. It is clear that our access is out of that NE corner and our title further states that we are granted a "Twelve (12) foot wide access and uility easement whose centerline is described as follows:
BEGINNING at a point which is South 08 57'26" West 13.04 feet from the Northewest corner" and further goes on to describe the length of access road we have ("437.59 feet to a point on the East right-of-way line of an existing County Road and the end centerline") The other two properties NE of us have similar access wordings and there is a documented survey from 1977 when all 4 properties were one 6.61 acre lot that lists the drive as an "access road" as well as another survey from 2006 of the neighbor furthest up the hill stating the drive is an access road. The records office could not find our recorded survey, but until the 90's, they were not required to be filed with the county and we have not formally had one in the time that we have been the owners.
(my apologies for the length of my explanation)
That said, does the neighbor to the north making an issue of our deeded entrance actually have any right to deny our access?
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