A Brief Introduction of Easement Agreement
Generally, an easement or easement agreement is referred to as a concept of real estate where one party will be using the property of another party by paying a specified sum of fees. Here, the fees paid will be regarded as the consideration amount for easement rights. The parties to this agreement are a tenant who pays the fee for easement and a landlord to whom the fee is paid. However, there is no requirement that an easement agreement should be created between a tenant and a landlord. The parties involved in such an Agreement are a tenant who is paying the fees and landlord, the owner of the property.
An easement can be regarded as the right for the use of the land of some other person for a definite period of time. This can be better understood with the help of the following examples;
- When a person wants to run telephone or electricity lines through other areas, he pays for easement for utilising that land
- If drain pipes, gas supply lines or water connections need to be made through some other property, then an easement agreement has to be made. Driving across the land for easy access to the other property/land.
Easements can provide prohibition on the owner for the use of land when he signs an easement agreement form with the other party; however, it is completely dependent on the terms and conditions of the Agreement provided.
Who Takes the Easement Agreement?
This agreement can be defined as a real estate concept wherein one party will be using the property of another party by paying a specified sum of fees. Here, the fees paid will be regarded as the consideration amount for easement rights. The parties involved in such an agreement are a tenant who is paying the fees and landlord, the owner of the property.
Purpose of the Easement Agreement
The main purpose of this Agreement to avoid any sort of dispute between the parties, i.e., the landowner and the tenant, or two neighbors, or any landowners or dwellers who need to use the other’s property. The Agreement provides the party’s legal rights to perform their respective promises made by them to each other.
The possibility of fraud and cheating can also be avoided with the help of such a legally binding Agreement. More importantly, in case of any disputes in the future, the same can be handled in an effective manner.
Contents of the Easement Agreement
Because of the nature of the agreement, deciding on the clauses to include in the access easement contract can get confusing. Downloading a sample easement agreement form can help you understand what clauses need to be included, and what you could add. The following some of the main contents of an Easement agreement template;
- Name and address of the owner of the land and users of the property
- Address of the property for which agreement is being made
- Total Rent Amount
- Security Deposit if any
- Agreement Duration
- Attorney Fees
- Renewal Fees if any
- Details of Facilities and Amenities
- Methods and process of termination of Agreement
How to Draft the Easement Agreement?
The below-mentioned details are required to be considered while drafting an easement agreement template;
- The names and address of the owner of the land and users of the property with their permanent address, present address with respective telephone numbers
- A brief description of the property including the analysis of the geographical area
- Amount of Rent
- Late fee charges if any
- Due date of Rent
- Grace Period if applicable
- Penalties if any
- Brief description of the facilities and amenities provided in the property
- Maintenance Charges if any
- Duration of the Agreement
- Terms and Conditions of the Agreement
- Methods of termination
- Remedies in case of breach of contract
Benefits & Drawbacks of the Easement Agreement
Benefits include
- This agreement can provide your neighbor with an option to use part of your land as a driveway to his own property.
- This agreement also provides an opportunity to conserve land and prevent any commercial projects developing.
- With this agreement, you can also prevent an owner from changing the landscape, the building or altering any design, especially if there’s any historical value to it.
- It provides an advantage to each of the parties to avoid any sort of dispute in the future, or in case of any dispute, they can go the legal way to sort out the same.
- The Agreement provides the party’s legal rights to perform their respective promises made by them to each other.
- The possibility of fraud and cheating can also be avoided with the help of such a legally binding Agreement.
- More importantly, in case of any disputes in the future, the same can be handled in an effective manner.
However, there are certain drawbacks too
- Easements can provide prohibition on the owner for the use of land when he signs an easement agreement form with the other party; however, it is completely dependent on the terms and conditions of the Agreement provided.
What Happens in Case of Violation?
There can be various methods, ways, processes, rules, and regulations for the violation of an agreement. Traditionally, this agreement is terminated when the individual that took the easement buys the estate on which the easement was taken or when the holder of the easement relinquishes his rights on the agreement in writing to the other party.
Moreover, the violation of an agreement and its grounds completely dependent on the parties involved and their current situation. In case of violation of an easement agreement, the owner of the land can terminate the contract with the user of the land and also may evict him if he does not fulfill the terms and conditions as specified in the contract.
Apart from that, the contract can be terminated based on the violation of Agreement, which is otherwise known as breach of contract. The user can be sued by the other users for not performing the promise made by him as agreed in the contract or Agreement(1). In case the violation of the Agreement on the part of the landowner of property, the users can sue the landlord for forceful eviction from the property without providing any justified explanation. However, there are so many ways to tackle the disputes between the parties in an agreement which completely based on current situations.
An easement agreement is a legal document that provides legally enforceable rights to both the parties in the contract to perform their promises as specified in a diligent manner and avoid any sort of dispute. In case of any dispute, this Agreement helps both the parties to deal with the issue in an amicable manner.