Easement in gross
An easement held by a person or company rather than by a neighboring parcel.
Utility easements are the most common easement in gross. The electric, gas, water, or telecom provider holds the right directly, and there is no benefited parcel next door.
Commercial easements in gross are usually transferable, so a utility that merges or sells its network passes the right along with it.
Why it matters when you buy
Utility easements frequently run the full length of a side or rear yard and typically prohibit permanent structures inside them.
How it reads in a real document
“Easement to Metro Gas Company, its successors and assigns, recorded in Book 902, Page 15.”
“Successors and assigns” with no benefited parcel named marks this as an easement in gross. The right belongs to the company and travels with the company, so a merger or sale of the network carries it forward.
The mistake people make
Assuming a defunct or renamed utility ends the easement. The right transfers with the corporate assets.
What to do next
- Trace who currently holds the easement — the named company may no longer exist under that name.
- Request the holder's construction standards, which state what may be placed inside the strip.
- Route fencing and landscaping around the corridor rather than inside it.
What it does to value
Commercial easements in gross -- pipelines, transmission lines, fiber -- are the ones that most often carry real dollar impact, because they are wide, permanent, and exclusive of structures. Personal easements in gross are usually a smaller concern, since they end with the individual who holds them.
What is not true
It is not true that every easement in gross disappears when the holder does. Commercial ones are assignable and are bought and sold with the utility system they serve.
Questions people ask
What is the difference from an appurtenant easement?
An easement in gross benefits a person or a company rather than a neighboring parcel. There is no dominant estate. A power company's corridor across your farm serves the company's network, not the tract next door, so nothing about the neighbor's land changes if the corridor is released.
Can a utility sell its easement to another company?
Commercial easements in gross are generally assignable, and they change hands whenever systems are sold or merged. Your title exception may name a company that no longer exists; the current successor still holds the rights.
Does a personal easement in gross bind the next owner of my land?
If it was recorded, yes, for as long as it lasts -- but a personal easement in gross typically ends when the individual holder dies, and it is generally not transferable. The recorded language, not the label, decides it.
Related terms
Where this comes up
Homeowner questions where “easement in gross” decides the answer:
- What is an easement on my property?
- Can I remove an easement from my property?
- What is a conservation easement?
- Do easements transfer with the property?
- What are the three types of easements?
Time limits differ by state - see the prescriptive easement period where your property is.
Wondering what an encumbrance like this is worth? Estimate the effect on property value.
General educational reference only. Prescription periods and their exceptions change, and several states set the period by case law rather than by statute. Read the linked official code and consult a licensed attorney in that state before relying on any of it.
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