State Refusing to Give Access to My Hunting Land

[BurkeM]

Did you ask the previous owner???

 

[Huckleberry]

Did you ask the previous owner???

This^^^

Any ROW or Access should have conveyed

Any utility ROW going to or through the property?

 

[Harrys]

You need a good property lawyer, there is an old statute basically if an area has been used for access more than 20 years with out challange then the access is granted a perminent right away. Some land owners where I live were placing fences to block access to the bay. However, they were taken to court and they were told to remove the fences. The ruling was base on the right away ues for more than 20 years. A good property lawyer may be able to research land titles and discover an existing right away.

 

[Slackdaddy]

I just want to know the thought process during the purchase of the property.

 

[E.Shell]

You need a good property lawyer, there is an old statute basically if an area has been used for access more than 20 years with out challange then the access is granted a perminent right away. Some land owners where I live were placing fences to block access to the bay. However, they were taken to court and they were told to remove the fences. The ruling was base on the right away ues for more than 20 years. A good property lawyer may be able to research land titles and discover an existing right away.

"Right Of Way".

 

[Harrys]

"Right Of Way".

OK mr Obvious

 

[traveller]

Now you know why the land was affordable.

Talk to a lawyer familiar with land use issues. You are probably ******, but sometimes you can force an easement if you can prove that at some time in the past the landowner allowed the crossing of the strip of land.

 

[rseymorejr]

"Right Of Way".

He needs his right of way right away!

 

[lazarus]

Rule one of real estate is don't buy landlocked properties!

Rule number 2, but landlock properties that your existing property is locking in

 

[E.Shell]

You're welcome. I figured you would appreciate not doing that same thing over and over.

 

[delaware_export]

The lawyer and doing research in property and past owners, usage and access are going to be needed. A friend was really good at this. Discovered and resolved two different ROW issues on his places. One, the state or county, forget which, got a little vindictive about … and the win was also a loss.

His research went back to some of the original land grants in Sussex county. and the original heirs (not a lawyer, my recollection of his explanation)

good luck. It isn’t cheap.

 

[hobiecat590]

You need a good property lawyer, there is an old statute basically if an area has been used for access more than 20 years with out challange then the access is granted a perminent right away. Some land owners where I live were placing fences to block access to the bay. However, they were taken to court and they were told to remove the fences. The ruling was base on the right away ues for more than 20 years. A good property lawyer may be able to research land titles and discover an existing right away.

^This^ Try and find an old 20+ year old driveway or path, this would constitute a de-facto right of way even though it may not be listed in your deed. I had to contact an adjacent (friendly) landowner for a signature so I could satisfy a mortgage lender. (My 2 other neighbors using the same driveway did this also). This permitted me to close quickly. If my friendly owner had refused to sign for the easement, the court would have granted one but it would have taken additional time to get on the docket etc. In my case it was never a question of if, but when the easement would be granted. Good luck.

 

[GTOGUNNER]

Google maps go back many years. Some of them clear enough to see if a path existed at one time.


Sent from an undisclosed location.

 

[D&Ds]

I have had to hold off on having concealed carry and one-on-one classes, shooting events, and giving rights to hunt on a piece of land I purchased in Nanjemoy, MD. A number of unfriendly neighbors and the State of Maryland are giving me a very hard time and not allowing me to park or gain a small easement across 50-feet of Wildlife Preservation Land so that I can gain access to the land I purchased that is land-locked and has no road access. The state has denied my request for a 50-foot long easement and for an allowance to park 2 cars on state land for 2 hours every weekend to gain access to my land because it will "disrupt the wildlife." Does anyone have experience with something like this? The State of MD is the worst. I am wondering if I should post the State POCs' contact information and ask people to email them to please allow me some sort of access. Not sure if that would help though.

You need to have a Professional Land Surveyor take a look at your property documents before a lawyer. It is very possible that a ROW was never established and bullying the adjoining landowners wont help. They are not under any legal obligation to allow you to cross their land. Did you ask the other neighbors about purchasing a ROW from them?

 

[MD Shooter Envy]

to the OP, sign up for a free account on MDLANDREC.NET. It has all plats, surveys, land records, etc back hundreds of years.

 

[capinyoass]

not allowing me to park or gain a small easement across 50-feet of Wildlife Preservation Land so that I can gain access to the land I purchased that is land-locked and has no road access. The state has denied my request for a 50-foot long easement

Access vs improvements for a road or parking are very different. Whats the truth here, are they telling you you cant set foot on your property, or deniying your request to allow vehicle access?

 

[Inigoes]

not allowing me to park or gain a small easement across 50-feet of Wildlife Preservation Land so that I can gain access to the land I purchased that is land-locked and has no road access. The state has denied my request for a 50-foot long easement

Access vs improvements for a road or parking are very different. Whats the truth here, are they telling you you cant set foot on your property, or deniying your request to allow vehicle access?

Yes, and the subject has even been held up in the courts.

The buyer should have made sure access was guaranteed before shelling out the money. The land is worthless to anyone except for a neighboring property owner. They don't even have to own it, to enjoy it, really.

 

[Bullfrog]

Google maps go back many years. Some of them clear enough to see if a path existed at one time.


Sent from an undisclosed location.

There are aerial photo surveys online that go back before google (or the internet) existed. I've linked them here before, I'll have to find the bookmarks.

 

[Afrikeber]

I’m sure there is a game trail or trails though the states property to yours.

 

[deerhtr]

md real property sdat maps are a useful tool to help with answering this.