what's your opinion

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Just curious about what yall think. The highway department came to see me yesterday. Seems our fence and driveway colums have got to be moved. Apparently they need to be ( 75 ) feet from the center line of our 2 lane highway. Aparently back in 1928 they bought the right of way because of two culverts they supposedly maintain. Though in the last 10 years we've lived here I've NEVER seen them out here.( I take that back. They came out last month and removed the body of a dead animal. I have serious doubts there was a highway here in 1928. I think what it really boils down to is they want to get rid of the guy across the highway. They are pretty ( no very ) messy.Their mess goes all the way to the highway and beyond. And because of complaints from passers-by they are trying to clean them up. I guess I should be happy I'm not them. They have two wells and have to move them both. I guess I shouldn't complain about loosing my plum trees which I planted as a screen to block the view and noise from highway and my very best pear tree, which my husband planted over 20 years ago. ( His folks lived here for almost 30 years before us.) Well I think It's a reall pain . Oh yes. I guess I should have figured something was up when the water and phone company put their lines so far up in our yard. Which by the way can be no closer than 5 feet to the highway domain. How far do ya think they can go ? And if the highway department bought the right of way for 75 feet then why are utilities allowed to put their stuff even farther? Do you suppose I actually own any of my property? Was ten and one half acres, I thought. Well just curious anyway. What do ya think? Bonnie

-- Bonnie (josabo1@juno.com), June 13, 2000

Answers

Bonnie: Go to your county assessor's office and ask to see the plat maps. Helps if you have your legal description when you go, which is on your tax statement from last year. If not, they can locate it from the address. ALL the easements should be shown on the map, including the footage of each. That is about the only way you know for sure. Go from there after you find out. Good luck! Jan

-- Jan in Colorado (Janice12@aol.com), June 13, 2000.

Welcome to the future. I had same hassles over hiway right of way when powers that be insisted that a snowmobile trail had to be on certain side of the road even though nothing on other side. (This was when I lived in Michigan) Cost too much to fight it, so I sold out and moved. I mean I had 500 snowmobilers cross my remote property in one day. One even shot at my dog. But these people made lot of money for the local merchants who were ones that ran the local government. Of course I have seen same stuff here in AR when they want to widen a hiway. Can have hiway right up close to your front door. They even want to set the price on any land they take from you. Should be an independent appraisal and they have to buy all of it. Then they can sell off whatever they want to somebody who can make a choice whether to live with so called progress.

-- Hermit John (ozarkhermit@pleasedontspamme.com), June 13, 2000.

Up here in Wisconsin whatever is in the ditch is considered the highway depts'. They've come and cut out trees 10' off the road cause of future accidents. They say if the tree is in the ditch and someone hits it, then they can get sued. We were told from the road thru the ditch, is theres'. BUT the electric co. will also cut out any trees that are too close to power lines (within 10 ft.)and they are this side of the ditch even.

-- Pat (pmikul@pcpros.net), June 13, 2000.

I agree with Jan, check out your deed with the taxing authority in your area. Some folks hereabouts own the land, but the state has a right of way across their property, restricting any development within so many feet of the centerline.

I intercepted our local county road building crew on my property three years ago. They were going to make it a county (public) road. Without asking me! I asked them how wide the R.O.W. would be, they said 17' from centerline. I asked em if they were going to pave it and put in culverts. Naw, they didn't have enough money for that. So, I just told em I didn't need for it to be a County Road. I would have had all sorts of riffraff coming onto my property, besides losing a one mile strip 34' wide. I can live with a bad road easier than a good road with bad people wandering around where they don't belong. I've found most criminals don't want to get their car's dirty or stuck in a ditch.

-- phil briggs (phillipbriggs@thenett.com), June 13, 2000.


Jan is right. Knowledge is power. And talk to neighbors. This is how we got a @#%$^ red flashing tower light turned out. It was a grudge light (in a divorce) to begin with. Make everyone provide WRITTEN documentation. That way you have something to fight against. Hang in there.

-- Anne (HT@H.com), June 13, 2000.


we are the proud "owners" of a telephone pole smack in the middle of our field,right next to our barn. we can not have it move we can not use it to mount a light to and we need to always allow anyone to get to it. our power,lights ect. are not on it,but 40 yrs. ago the pole was put in with a right of way.we want to put a hay loft on our building but cant because it will be to close to the wires theyown the air space right of way too.it is a real pain. the electric company shows up to check it and in my field they go ,once they "forgot "to lock the gate {boy can pigs run fast} . '

-- renee oneill (oneillsr@home.com), June 14, 2000.

Get all the records you can. Last year Alabama Power came and started clear cutting a 100 ft swath through our woods! I had a FIT! I threatened to chain myself to a tree and half all my news buddies come out! It seemed my grandpa sold them the right of way back in 1923! Anyway, we wound up making a deal with them that they take down 13 HUGE pine trees in our front yard, bore the stumps, and fill inwith top soil in exchange with them making the mess through our woods. There was no way to stop them and the people that sued them in court came out with only $1000. The cutting and clean up of our big trees in our agreement cost them nearly $7000 (they had to hire a tree company to come out and do it right) and then they later paid us $300 cash for wanting to take down three more trees that weren't on the right of way but that they were afraid would fall on their lines!

So we came out o.k. They even put up a nice pasture gate, a lot nicer than we would have ever been able to afford. So I guess we came out with 'the lesster of two evils.'

-- Suzy in 'Bama (slgt@yahoo.com), June 17, 2000.


In my opinion, I would figure from reading this that you inherited or were given your property (?) However, if anyone on this forum is looking to buy property, it is critical to examine all written documentation(deed, etc) regarding easements, right of way,mineral rights, etc., before purchase. Also be familiar with local laws and zoning, to the extent that you are able. Sometimes it pays to hire legal advice just so you know exactly what you are buying before you sign. Then, you shouldn't have problems, but if you do, they should be able to be cleared up from revisiting the documents, etc.. As it was stated before, more or less, knowledge is power. Best of luck to you in getting this resolved! It sounds very frustrating!

-- sheepish (rborgo@gte.net), June 17, 2000.

This should be in the 'jokes' post. After years of battling with the Town over paying taxes for 20 X 70 feet of ROAD, my ex-husband got it in his mind one Saturday to set up a toll! You see, at one time our property went all the way to the river, but it was sold off bit by bit, and no one ever figured in or out the tax on the road. When the homeowners tried to pass, he showed them the deed/survey and told them, I own this road, you have to pay. Yikes! It's funny now, it wasn't then! He was nearly arrested. I'm not recommending this insanity, but the town finally did stop taxing him for that portion of property.

-- Kathy (catfish@bestweb.net), June 17, 2000.

Any and every land purchase should have a complete title and deed check run. The up front cost far outweighs any future problems. Land suits are some of the most expensive and hardest legal cases to win. They also take an incredibly long time (Many last 5-10 years) Another point you might check into is making sure that all of your deeds are recorded. Sad to say to that many people have given their lives around here over property lines. The old saying is true that you can killed for three things...Land, women and dogs! ( I think that's right)

-- Jennifer (KY) (acornfork@hotmail.com), June 17, 2000.


Well, it's actually more complicated than it seems even. Back in 196? my husbands father was friends with the woman who owned this property.( I don't know what kind of friend;I think he did a lot of work for her) It seems she wanted him to build a house on the property and she would leave him the land when she died. He wouldn't go for that of course ( that would be outright stupid ) So she supposedly sold him a 5.25 acre tract one half acre wide by 10 and one half acres long at the west edge of the property with the understanding that he would buy more as he could afford to. Anyway for what ever reason they had a falling out and he never got the rest.We bought the property from them 10 years ago on a rent to own basis. Not a problem trusting them (his parents) Meanwhile she did leave the rest of the property in her will to his brother inlaw. (my husbands uncle; not a close relative)And in the process of him selling off the property he found out that in reality what they owned (us now) was not the land our house is sitting on but the 5.25 acred in the middle of his property.( the best part of it) anyway he wanted us to sign a quick claim deed and then in return he would give us the deed to the land we are presently on.Well for the past ten years we have been paying taxes on 4.90 acres.(so that sort of makes sense) His parents have a warenty deed to what ever property they owned. So to try and make sence of this.His lawyer drew up a waranty deed for the property we are currently on and a seperate 5 acres next to our property and exchanged property with us and sold us the property next to ours for half the going rate.The inlaws hold the deed to what we are on (will be paid off in April 2001) and the uncles lawyer holds the deed to the other 5 acres in escrole until we pay it off. Sounds pretty complicated.Well it is I feel terribly ignorant.Any way my husbands lawyer says it is all legal now and the inlaws asure me it's ok.They have a new warrenty deed ( Both peices of land have been surveyed and the corners marked. Any way it's unnerving to have some one come and say they are messing with your property.I have my corners marked and the surveyer is insured and suposedly very reliable.

-- Bonnie (josabo1@juno.com), June 18, 2000.

My husband did not have the lawyer. Our inlaws did.

-- Bonnie (josabo1@juno.com), June 18, 2000.

My folks had a problem when someone complained about their fence blocking a horseback riding easement. The easement was "too narrow" according to them and they could not ride through the ditch. Now, mind you I have horses and have ridden through. It was pretty hairy and steep, but that had nothing to do with the fence. They also said the rear fence was 10 feet over the property line. The lot across the rear fence is empty, so there was no trouble there, just nosy neighbors who were looking to raise trouble. Rather than move our fence, my father called the county. Since the county had no records of exactly where the property line was my father demanded a survey at the county's expence. End of that problem and the fences stayed put. (BTW, the rear fence was probably over 20 yrs old and both were there at 10 yrs.)

-- Elle (hotging@aol.com), June 19, 2000.

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