Legal Question in Construction Law in District of Columbia
Property bought with encroachment
We bought a townhouse in the District of Columbia two years ago. We have since become aware that the survey given us does not exactly represent the amount of property that we have. The survey indicates 20' feet across facing the alley. In reality, the property is 18+' across facing the alley. The contractor, who developed our lot and the lot next door apparantly gave a foot or more of our land to the adjoining property as indicated by the fence enclosure. We have since noticed that the survey states, in bold letters in the upper left-hand corner that ''Encroachments May Exist''. Is that ''pro forma'' on all deeds or is it something we should have noticed before settlement. Is there any redress for us and what would the process be, if any, since the present owners of the adjoining property are our friends and are most certainly not aware of the encroachment.
1 Answer from Attorneys
Re: Property bought with encroachment
It's likely pro forma only for the houses in that particular area, and, yes, this is an item which you should've questioned prior to settlement.
Assuming you have a valid title insurance policy in place, your first step should be to carefully examine its boilerplate provisions to see whether it contains a waiver or exclusion for the minor type of encroachment which you've described.
If so, I'd say forget it. If not, you could bring it to the attention of the title insurer and entertain any settlement proposal which they are inclined to make.
Whatever course of action you decide to pursue, you must always consider, neverthless, the issue as to what are your real damages due to this very minor encroachment and what are the costs likely to be in order to remedy it?
Related Questions & Answers
Looking for something else?
10,200 active attorneys ready to answer your legal questions today.
Featured Attorneys
Earn additional revenue and grow your business.
