Are you buying a waterfront property in Sydney? Have you recently discovered that your property has a water acquisition easement on the title deed and you are unaware of its implications?
A water acquisition easement in Sydney is a common thing. As a property owner, you must understand the fundamentals of a water easement and how it affects your use of the property. This will be useful in understanding your rights and responsibilities regarding the water easement. In this blog, we will explore the basics of water acquisition easement in Sydney, the rights and responsibilities involved and the easement’s impact on the value of the property.
What is a Water Acquisition Easement?
Before understanding the water access in waterfront properties and easements, it is better to know what a water acquisition easement is. An easement is a way of granting the right of access to another property/owner who does not own the land. It involves a dominant tenement (benefitting land) gaining a right over a servient tenement (party over which the easement is exercised a waterfront property).
The dominant party can be in the form of a utility company, a government body, or property owner(s) in the neighbourhood etc. The servient owner is therefore compelled by the easement to grant access to access the area described in the legal paperwork. Water easements grant access to a water body to water utilities or to perform drainage on the land.
How Water Easement Acquisitions Work in Real Estate
A water easement is a written record that is attached to the title of the property of the person who owns the land. This will also detail the people who are authorized to use the easement. If it concerns the neighbor from the same locality, they might also have easement rights which will be included in the property title. Some of the most common easements include access to local utilities such as water pipes and sewage systems for drainage of water, a lakeside or a nearby recreational water source.
About real estate, some rules will be enforced on both the owner of the land and the person who has the right to use the water easement. For example, if the homeowner has a community drainage system, they may refrain from grading or landscaping their property to avoid changes in the drainage system. Similarly, if a house is in the proximity of the community’s water body and requires other community members to have access to it for recreational purposes, the homeowner would not be allowed to put up a fence in the area that prevents that access.
How a Water Easement Impacts the Property Value
In case there is a water easement on a land that allows access to a dominant party, the value of a property may go down. This is because particular actions have to be taken to maintain an easement in place. A water easement binds the property for the utilization of another party, such as deeded water access to a home that is not on the water, and the property value rises. Moreover, with a water easement, it is very crucial to make sure that it transfers properly or dissolves properly when a home sale is transacted.
However, all hope is not lost and there is good news as well for the landowners with water easements on their property. An easement mandates the dominant party to follow the rules and respect the rights of the servient tenement. Therefore, if you are looking for a calm neighbourhood, it is in your best interest to buy a property with a water easement involved.
FAQs
- How can a water easement on a property be terminated?
If a water acquisition easement is no longer needed then it can be terminated by the approval of Services Development. The cost of the termination of the water acquisition easement will be covered by the proponent party. Moreover, the property owner is required to present the necessary documents at the Lands Titles Office. - In a water acquisition easement in Sydney, which party owns the right to the land?
The land itself does not change the Certificate of Title and remains in the owner’s name and an easement registered on the title is a way of keeping it. - Who is responsible for the upkeep and maintenance of the land with water easement?
The land owner is accountable for the upkeep of their property in compliance with these guidelines and vegetation management. - What are the permitted activities in the water easement?
Some activities and developments, included in the list of “permitted activities”, can be carried on within water easements where personal safety and infrastructure integrity are not at risk. Following is a list of permitted activities:
- Domestic recreation.
- Planting of Power and Water approved plants and shrubs
- Lawn planting with restricted tilling of the soil
- Installation of removable bricks, blue metal gravel or similar small stones.
- Vehicle Parking.
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