National Real Estate Exam (PSI)Property OwnershipHard
A utility company holds the right to run power lines across a rural parcel of land, but the utility company owns no adjacent land itself. What type of easement is this?
- AEasement in gross
- BEasement appurtenant
- CPrescriptive easement
- DEasement by necessity
Show answer & explanationAnswer & explanation
Correct answer: A. Easement in gross
An easement in gross benefits a person or entity (like a utility company) rather than an adjoining parcel of land; there is no dominant estate because the utility owns no benefited land nearby.
Why the other options are wrong
- B. Easement appurtenant requires both a dominant and servient estate (adjoining parcels), which doesn't apply here.
- C. Prescriptive easements arise from long-term open, notorious use, not a granted utility right.
- D. Easement by necessity arises from landlocked parcels needing access, not utility rights.
Easement in Gross
A nonpossessory right to use another's land that benefits a specific person or entity rather than an adjoining parcel of land; commonly used for utility lines.
- No dominant estate exists—only a servient estate
- Personal easements in gross typically do not transfer with land
- Commercial easements in gross (like utility lines) often are transferable
Memory trick: No neighbor land means it's 'in gross,' benefiting a person or company instead.