Realtor Sander Scott explains how adverse possession and prescriptive easements threaten waterfront property owners in Michigan. After 15 years of unauthorized use, someone can claim ownership or permanent easement rights to your land. Protect yourself by issuing formal notice, granting permission, or taking legal action before it's too late.
Understanding your property rights as a waterfront property owner is really important. Today's topic, I want to talk about adverse possession or the establishment of a prescriptive easement. Now, these concepts apply to all types of property, but they tend to happen more often with waterfront properties than with other properties. So if you're looking for a waterfront property or you currently own one, you need to know about adverse possession and prescriptive easements. Adverse possession refers to claiming ownership of a property that was not yours originally. So for someone to make a claim of adverse possession, several things need to occur. Number one, it takes 15 years for someone, for like a neighbor or someone to make a claim of adverse possession. Possession. 15 years. What? What? What? What? So the clock is ticking when it comes to that. It takes 15 years of using the property in certain ways, okay? Which brings us to number 2: it must be hostile use. So this doesn't have anything to do with being snarky or nasty. It has to do with using the land without permission. If permission is given, you You can't make a claim of adverse possession. It has to be without permission. Okay. Number 3, they have to have been treating the property as if they own it. It needs to be open and notorious, regularly visible, using it all the time. Number 4, it must be exclusive use. It cannot be used by the true owner of the property at the same time the individual seeking to establish that right through adverse possession. So the current owner kind of has to be a little neglectful, not paying attention, can't be currently using it. Number 5, the individual seeking to gain the property through adverse possession must seek legal action to finalize that transfer. So you want to claim— make a claim of adverse possession, you need to seek legal action to finalize that claim. Okay, now let's talk about prescriptive easements. Prescriptive easements. Easements are similar to adverse possession in that you're making a claim about using someone else's property for a certain purpose over a period of time. However, prescriptive easements grant only specific rights, not full ownership. So let's take an example. Imagine your neighbor has been using your driveway for 15 years without your consent. Hi, why did you do that? Without my consent? They might be able to establish a permanent easement to use it legally. Similarly, if a neighbor has been using a path down to Lake Leona or a path down across your property to access the water feature, whatever that may be, they may be able to get a legal easement for that access going forward. Expanding easements rights, prescriptive rights sometimes extend to existing usage rights. Consider a situation where someone has an easement to access a lake but wasn't initially allowed to do things like sunbathe or dock a boat there. If they consistently engage in these activities for over 15 years without the property owner's agreement, they might be able to gain the right to do that legally. So they may have been granted access, but they weren't allowed to dock a boat. But if they're docking a boat for 15 years, now they might be able to establish that as a new permanent right. Okay, why do these things matter? Well, waterfront property water around lakes, often you face these challenges of adverse possession and prescriptive easements because these lake parcels are usually small, older, have lot lines that overlap, and waterfront property just continues to gain value. It's one of the fastest rates of appreciation of any type of property out there. So, you know, you have a scarce resource, that waterfront, that's highly sought after, high in demand, you're going to have issues related to adverse possession or prescriptive easements. Protecting your rights, you know, contrary to popular belief, gaining ownership through adverse possession or prescriptive easement is not easy. It's not easy. Yeah, I know. Yeah, I know. I know. But if you notice nearby landowners using your property in ways that could trigger this 15-year period, you should take steps to protect your rights. Here are some examples of what steps you can take to protect your rights, to protect yourself against a claim of prescriptive easement or adverse possession. Number 1, give them formal notice to stop the unauthorized use. Send them a letter, give them notice. Number 2, if you want to be nice, you can just give them formal permission. Remember, adverse possession, uh, the claimant must show that no possession was granted. Number 3, you can take legal action to address it. Okay, but remember the steps for adverse possession and prescriptive easement, uh, that we talked about earlier. Final thoughts: remember, the person who gains property rights through adverse possession or permanent prescriptive easement usually isn't required to pay the previous owner. This is an area— this area of real estate law is complex. So if you suspect someone is trying to claim rights to your property through these methods, consult an attorney immediately. Don't ignore the situation, as delays can affect the outcome. Remember, the clock starts ticking as soon as these claims are made. Stay informed, protect your property, and enjoy the benefits of owning a stunning Traverse City waterfront home or Leona County waterfront property. Your waterfront oasis should be a source of joy, not a cause of concern. But it's better to be proactive and take care of the issue once you see it, the possibility of it arising. Thanks so much for tuning in. Really appreciate it. I'm Sander Scott, your full-service realtor.
