Driveway agreement?

[gmvh]

We're about to buy a house that has a shared driveway, no driveway agreement on record and we'd like to create one to have filed.

Do you have one?  If so, what's included in it?

Maintenance?

Replacement (it's asphalt)?

Plowing?

Permission for basic use (most of the drive is on the neighbor's property and we're behind them)?

Is there a term length of the agreement?

Thanks!

[ollyoxenfree]

We've lived with a shared driveway in the past but never had a written agreement. We always relied on common sense and courtesy. It's probably a good idea to get the basics in writing though.  

Our biggest headaches were snow shoveling and occasionally getting blocked - in or out.

"Prompt snow removal" is defined differently by different people. Some people think that "prompt" means sometime in the next 24 to 48 hours. Others think it means "as the snowflakes dust the ground". If it will bother you one way or the other, make sure you specify. If you specify a tight deadline, make sure you can live up to it. To be honest, we were the ones who usually cleared the snow - and that got tiresome by the end of a long winter. 

Getting blocked in/out can happen for all sorts of reasons - the driveway is the best place to wash the car or work on repairs, the side door is the most convenient to unload groceries, etc. The neighbours blocked us occasionally and we blocked them sometimes. If we really needed to get past, we just asked nicely. It was never a big problem.

With any written agreement, I'd include some dispute resolution mechanism in case there is a problem that you can't solve together. What neutral 3rd party will help you decide? You want to avoid expensive legal fees and court costs. Communities often have alternative dispute resolution or mediation facilities that you can access for help. 

[HollyBearsMom]

We had a shared driveway for years and never had a formal/written agreement.  Honestly it never even occurred to me! 

We live in new england so snow was a big deal.  We all pitched and shoveled. The only time it sucked was if they were on vacation during a big storm and visa versa. After we moved the new owner and our neighbors bought a snow blower and shared the cost. The new owners *hated* shoveling so after the first storm they begged our neighbors to help finance.  

It had to be repaved one year and we used the property lines to determine the % we each had to pay. They had a car port off the driveway so they "owned" a larger portion of the paved area. 

Maybe we were lucky to have great neighbors (and they were lucky to have us, LOL) but we were there for 5 years and common courtesy was all we needed.

[gmvh]

Thanks for the thoughts, I'd love to hear more!

The house that the drive is shared with is also for sale so we're trying to cover ourselves because we'd hate to have some crazies move in and decide we can't use the drive (it's long and then forks, the main portion of the drive being on the neighbor's property and their fork is first).  I doubt that would happen but it's a weird, weird house and I just cannot imagine who is going to buy it.

Adding to the silliness is that I think a different neighbor (of the older, retired variety) actually plows out of kindness but he's not going to be there forever and I'd like to have our bases covered.

Anyone else have a driveway agreement?

[ollyoxenfree]

Originally Posted by gmvh 

The house that the drive is shared with is also for sale so we're trying to cover ourselves because we'd hate to have some crazies move in and decide we can't use the drive (it's long and then forks, the main portion of the drive being on the neighbor's property and their fork is first).  I doubt that would happen but it's a weird, weird house and I just cannot imagine who is going to buy it.

If you are concerned about your right to use the portion of the driveway that is on someone else's property, I'd ask for legal advice or research the laws in your area on "easements" and "adverse possession". In fact, this should have been sorted out as part of the due diligence before you finalized the purchase agreement. Did you have a real estate lawyer help you when you bought the house? 

An easement is essentially a right of way that exists to use someone else's property. Adverse possession is basically a right to use someone else's property - squatting on land - that arises even if the landowner doesn't give you express permission, as long as the use has occurred routinely for many years and seems to have been tolerated by the landowner. 

Either may apply in your circumstances, depending on how long the houses have existed, how long the driveway has been shared, whether there is another reasonable access, local statutes etc. (I'm assuming you live in a common law jurisdiction - this may be very different in some countries). 

Good luck. 
 

[HollyBearsMom]

second the research on easements.  It should have been part of your title search when you bought the house but if not do it now!  If you don't have legal rights to use the driveway you will be in for some major headaches  and potential major costs down the road.  

[greenmulberry]

We have a driveway agreement for our shared drive. About 300 feet is on our property, then it crosses to the neighbors, then forks to come to our house.

The easements are tied to the titles of the house. They never expire, unless a new easement is created and both parties agree.

The easement just says we have access to each others property while on the driveway(since it crosses both property lines), we have to share maintenence (and if there is a disagreement as to what is needed, the cheapest and most minimal maintenence is what is required).