Non-Exclusive Easements for Ingress & Egress

When someone needs access to land that another party owns, easements are used to address this problem. For instance, when someone purchases land that is landlocked or that is difficult to access, sometimes an easement is used to help make access possible. Easements can be complex, with a variety of uses and limitations, so understanding the specifics of the easement you are dealing with is essential to abiding by its terms. When it comes to a non-exclusive easement for ingress and egress, they address the rights of named parties to come and go through another's property.

Easements give people the legal right to use part of another person's property without owning it. According to NOLO, when you purchase property, utility companies often have easements to be able to access lines and provide services. Other easements might grant someone beach access through your property, use of your driveway or the right to pass through with construction equipment.

While many easements are permanent and apply to all future owners, some easements are temporary or time-limited. Certain easements account for utilities, while others do not. The only way to understand the specifics of your particular easement is to read the fine print. When you purchase property, title papers should reveal what easements exist for the property so that you can go into the transaction with full knowledge of how your land will be used.

When it comes to easements, ingress grants someone the right to enter your property. Most easements do not grant access to the entire property, so the specifics of where and when entitled parties are able to enter your property will be spelled out in the easement.

For instance, if your easement indicates that someone has access to enter through your driveway, this does not mean that they can enter through your yard or take a dip in your swimming pool. The named party in the easement can only enter through the driveway.

While ingress pertains to entering your property, egress pertains to exiting your property. Usually, parties are granted access to enter and exit through the same place, but not always. For instance, if your rural property includes a one-way gravel driveway that enters on one side of the property but exits on the other, then the easement might stipulate which end is the entrance and which end is the exit.

Or, if construction equipment is granted ingress on one side of the yard and they cannot reasonably back up or turn around to exit the same way, they might need egress rights for an exit on the other side of your yard.

When someone has a non-exclusive easement, this means that more than one party can be granted an easement to your property. For instance, if the utility company has an easement to access a terminal at the end of your driveway, this does not mean that easement cannot also be granted to a neighbor to access their home through the use of your driveway.

According to Yasmin L. Stump Law Group, non-exclusive easements can be more restrictive than exclusive easements. It generally prevents landowners from blocking access to the easement area in order to accommodate everyone who has a legal right to access that portion of land.

Ingress and egress limitations are spelled out in each easement agreement, so pay attention to the specifics of which portion of your land will be used, how, by whom, when and for how long. This agreement will also indicate whether the easement is exclusive and only applies to one party, or if it is non-exclusive and can be granted to multiple parties. In addition, be aware that ingress and egress easements do not always include utilities. Sometimes, utilities are granted access through right-of-way easements, which tend to be more lasting and harder to change.