Easements in Michigan

What is an easement?  An easement is the legal right to use or possess someone else’s property.  The easement holder does not “own” or have title to the property, but has a right to use it in the manner described in the easement.  An easement is different from a license: a license to use land is given to a person and is temporary, while an easement is given to owners of land and is almost always permanent.  The owner of the land over which the easement runs is not allowed to interfere with the easement, even though the owner owns title to that land.

Uses of Easements.  The most common use of an easement is to gain access to and from other property (sometimes called an “ingress and egress easement” or a driveway easement).  This is used when a parcel of property is landlocked or is hard to access.  An easement over a neighboring parcel might be created which gives the owner of the landlocked parcel a right to travel over the neighboring parcel to access the property.  Other common uses of easements are:

·       Shared driveways and roadways, both residential and commercial

·       Utility companies and cell tower companies use easements for their lines and towers

·       Access to and from a lake, often given to “backlot” owners

Types of Easements.  There are several ways an easement can be created.  The type of easement is important, as each type gives the easement holder different rights, and each type often leads to different types of conflicts.  An express easement is created when the owners of two parcels agree in writing to create an easement. An easement by necessity is sometimes created when a parcel is landlocked, meaning there is no access to a road. Finally, a prescriptive easement can be created when one parcel has been using another parcel for access rights, without permission, for over fifteen years.

Click on the links to read more about each type of easement.