Which type of easement arises when one landowner sells a portion of property and the buyer has no access except to cross the seller's land?

Which type of easement arises when one landowner sells a portion of property and the buyer has no access except to cross the seller's land?

• A. Expressed easement
• B. Implied easement
• C. Covenant
• D. Easement by prescription

Answer: (B)

An easement by necessity arises when a parcel would be landlocked after sale, requiring crossing the seller’s land for access. This situation is best described as an implied easement because its existence is inferred from the circumstances of the property transfer, not from an explicit written grant. When a buyer ends up with no practical way to reach a public road, the law implies an easement to preserve the parcel’s usefulness and value. An expressed easement would require a clear, written grant in a deed or contract, which isn’t indicated here. A covenant is a promise about land use that runs with the property but does not itself create a right of way across another’s land. An easement by prescription results from long, adverse, continuous use without permission, which is a different path to creating a burden or benefit on someone’s property and isn’t what’s described in this land-split scenario.

An easement by necessity arises when a parcel would be landlocked after sale, requiring crossing the seller’s land for access. This situation is best described as an implied easement because its existence is inferred from the circumstances of the property transfer, not from an explicit written grant. When a buyer ends up with no practical way to reach a public road, the law implies an easement to preserve the parcel’s usefulness and value.

An expressed easement would require a clear, written grant in a deed or contract, which isn’t indicated here. A covenant is a promise about land use that runs with the property but does not itself create a right of way across another’s land. An easement by prescription results from long, adverse, continuous use without permission, which is a different path to creating a burden or benefit on someone’s property and isn’t what’s described in this land-split scenario.