Vacant land sold only to find out county drain easement runs through it. going to mediation any advice?

Question

All terms of selling lot was meant and now buyer finds out of the easement and states she want her money back asked for mediation. The easement is register, nothing was discussed at closing as we did not know about this when we bought it or sold it. It was sold As Is after I looked at our title insurance we were given at purchase it list the easments on that and what page and liber to find it. We are going to mediation soon and would like to have your outlook on this situation.

Answer 1

You purchase the land i`m hoping with a title search. That was not disclosed to you? Then the same goes for the buyer. It is called due diligence. In other words if it was disclosed to you and you did not know about it then you could not have known. If it did not turn up during your escrows title search and not made aware of it go to your title insurance for the dispute.
It is only a county easement for a drainage? That means it can not be built on. You can now go back after the other seller for non disclosure.

Answer 2

ANY public easement is NOT required to be disclosed at contract...you know why? Because it is the BUYER's responsibility, and if the buyer is represented by a Realtor, then it was the Realtor's responsibility to double check for any easements, etc, prior to contract.

They are responsible to check for ANYTHING that is public information..that is chain-of-title, zoning, building restrictions, easements, encroachments, and the list goes on and on.

A second opportunity would have been given long before closing when the title work is completed.

You can go to mediation, but in your case, the real estate law is on the side of the city/county.

Generally you can build around an easement within so many feet, but some areas are no-build zones, and this is CLEARLY stated in the title work.

Also, a contract conditional upon an acceptable survey (which I ALWAYS condition for in my contracts) would have protected you as well.

Sorry, but either you tried to buy property as a do-it-yourself project, or you hired an incompetent Realtor.

Your title insurance WILL NOT cover you.

If you did hire a Realtor, however, the Realtor should have carried Errors and Ommissions insurance that would cover a clear case of malpractice.

People want to know why you need a QUALIFIED REALTOR to represent you?

THIS IS WHY FOLKS!

Answer 3

i am not an attorney but have 10 years experience in mortgages, title, and an additional 5 in real estate, if indeed you have had a closing, and a deed transfer the buyer should have done their due dilegence, and had a title search done on the property which would have listed the easement, as it should have on the deed. all deed transfers must list all easements at the time of closing and should have been signed off at the closing which annotates the fact that the buyer is buying the property knowing about the easement. i don't see any reason here about why you are going to mediation. when u sold the property was an attorney present, did the buyer have representation, if so the representative is at fault, not you the seller, if representation for the buyer was not there who prepared the deed transfer, it should have noted the easement, if it didnt that person is at fault. not knowing how much money is involved at this point i would suggest you contact all involve in the sale they should all be at the mediation as all have gotten caught with their fingers in the cookie jar. if the money amount is 5 figures or more you would be wise to consult legal representation to go with you and alert them to what i have mentioned so they can prepare your case properly. a grand or 2 to an attorney may spare you untold aggravation later. gl

Answer 4

Had you been aware of the easement, you would have been required to disclose. Since you were unaware, it's the buyer's responsibility to ferrret that out prior to closing. If the buyer did not seek professional title advice or purchase title insurance, she's on her own. And frankly, title insurance won't help her either, since an easement is not considered a cloud on the title.