First, thanks for all the responses - very helpful
To answer a few questions that have cropped up
- This is a residential property my family and I would like to move into
- It seems that a "prescriptive easement" is the same as taking "adverse possession" (I think - I am not an attorney so I may be wrong)
- I will ask my real estate agent to speak with the seller's agent to see what if any paper trail exists about property C being permitted to access the driveway of property A
It appears there are only 2 viable choices were I to purchase the property:
- Negotiate as a condition of sale, a recision of any agreement allowing the owner of property C to access the driveway of property A (practically speaking I would make it a contingency in the purchase contract that the seller deliver a notarized affidavit signed by both parties that any granted access is revoked within N days of contract acceptance). This presumes that the owner of property C has not yet acquired "adverse possession". This option would likely result in being on a war footing with a neighbor right off the bat. Not something I relish.
- Accept the existing arrangement and preempt a possible "prescriptive easement" (assuming one hasn't "ripened" yet) by explicitly granting access with the right to revoke it, in writing. I don't love that idea because maintaining the driveway (it's long and sloped) would be on my dime while the neighbor could use the driveway at their pleasure and convenience.
TBC I really like many features of this property but I am conscious about emotions (hopefully) not clouding my judgement.