What are easements and boundary lines?

Whether you’re buying a property, building a house or renovating your property, easements and boundary lines could potentially throw a wrench in your plans. 

While rules and regulations vary between states and councils, it is important to understand the fundamentals of easements and boundary lines. 

What is an easement? 

An easement is the right to access, cross or otherwise use a portion of someone else’s land. In property terms, this means a person has the right to use your property for a specific purpose even though they are not the landowner. 

There are several different types of easements, but generally, an easement may be required to allow access to essential services such as water or electricity. 

If you are thinking about donning a hard hat and building your new home with the help of a construction loan, it’s important to understand what easements will come into play and how they will influence decisions over the course of your building journey. 

Why is knowing easements on a property important? 

Easements can dictate how you use parts of your land, who else is allowed to use it, and what you’re allowed to do on it. This means easements on your property can also affect its overall value. Your opportunities for developing, renovating or upgrading the property may be limited because of the easements in place. 

If a portion of your land has a utility easement on it, for example, you may be restricted from building anything on it. This means you won’t be able to build an extension or renovate the property in a way that could fully maximise its value. Or if your property has a right of carriageway easement, you may not be able to put a privacy fence or other structures that could obstruct it. 

What happens if you build on an easement? 

Building on an easement without approval can be dangerous. For instance, if you’re building on an easement of services, you might damage the water pipes or electrical wires underneath. This could mean hefty fines, shouldering the cost of repair for the damage, and the removal of the structure. 

How to see easements on a property 

Not sure if there’s easements on your property? You can find them doing a title search. Go to your local land registry office and request a copy of the property’s certificate of title and survey plan. This will show you the location of the easement. 

There may be times when easements don’t show up on the certificate of title. When that happens, you can ask local utility providers or send a request to Before You Dig Australia (BYDA) for an easement report.  

Conveyancing and building inspections can provide such information, or you can ask your local council if there are any existing easements on the land before you express your intent to buy. You can also contact a real estate lawyer or surveyor to understand the full implications of having easements on your property. 

What are the types of easements? 

Here are the different kinds of easements and how they can affect your property: 

Right of carriageway 

A common example is granting your neighbours access to their property via your driveway. While this passage must not be blocked, it is generally not the responsibility of the owner of the property to maintain the carriageway. 

Easement for services 

This type of easement exists so that essential services such as water, electricity and sewerage can be conveyed to those who need it. 

The easement may be above or under the property, such as power lines or stormwater pipes. If an authority has an easement registered over your land, they have full access to the easement so they can carry out repairs and maintenance. 

In most cases, easements for services are known as statutory easements. If you intend to build over a statutory easement, you would need to obtain council approval. 

Easement of support 

This easement provides neighbouring properties with reciprocal rights, such as mutual support of a structure. This typically applies to properties with adjoining structures such as shared walls. It prevents a property owner from taking any action that may compromise the shared structural integrity.

Easement of light and air 

Building certain walls or structures that obstruct your neighbour’s light, air and view may be prevented under this easement.

Going ahead and building without checking for an easement of 'light and air' could turn out to be a costly exercise, as it’s possible you will have to demolish the work.

Can you remove an easement? 

An easement registered on your property may no longer be required, and you may have the opportunity to have it removed from your property’s title depending on whether it’s private or public. 

A private easement is typically an agreement between neighbours to create a specific easement such as a wall, fence or access, whereas a public easement is an easement created by statutory authority such as local council.  

An easement can be removed in specific situations including: 

• the easement grantee and the easement grantor reach an agreement. 
• properties are combined into one parcel of land under single ownership. 
• the property isn’t being used, and the easement is abandoned. 
• the property is altered, e.g. battle-axe block may acquire alternative direct access if a new street is constructed at its rear. 

What are boundary lines? 

Boundary lines are the invisible lines that mark the borders of an area. When it comes to your property these mark the legal size and shape of your land, so you know its limitations. Council regulations with regards to boundaries are designed to make the sharing of boundaries fair for all parties. 

Your boundary lines will also dictate the area that you are responsible for, so you know where you can build fences or specific structures. This is useful information if you’re considering expanding your home or tackling a project like a pool, shed or granny flat. 

When building a specific structure like a pool, for safety reasons it is a legal requirement for it to be built a certain distance away from the boundary line. 

You can find out your boundary lines by looking at the deed to your home, which is provided upon sale. To gain a physical understanding, you can use a tape measure and check the boundaries for yourself, or you can use a licensed surveyor for a more accurate reading.   

Most residential boundaries are defined properties are bordered by private land on three sides and public land on the frontage road side. Road frontage regulations are designed to ensure a residence does not intrude upon public property. 

This means your new home will have to be situated a certain distance from a sidewalk or road, and a driveway cannot block traffic or divert street drainage. 

Final word 

Before you sign on the dotted line, it’s important to find out what easements and boundaries apply to the property you seek to purchase. 

This is especially important for property developers or for anyone buying vacant land, because the easement may restrict where on your land you are able to build without impacting service access. 

Easement and boundary lines can impact your property purchase or home build in unexpected ways. Even your home loan could be affected as easements and boundary lines may impact a property’s value. 

Please note this content is for general information purposes only and does not constitute legal advice. It should not be relied upon as the basis for any decision. We recommend seeking independent professional advice tailored to your individual circumstances.

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