8751 Water rights

Much as we all know how fine, wonderful and truthful all Estate Agents are - worldwide, not just in Italy - I'd suggest you need legal advice on such a critical matter

YOu only have a right if it states it in the Deed and is called a 'Servitu'
You will have to get permission to dig a well so allow up to 10,000 Euros if indeed you have enough land to find a water source.
I would look for another house.
Lulu
Tunkeyitalia
[url=http://www.turnkeyitalia.com]index[/url]

I agree but I thought I would try to find out what are other peoples experiences of this sort of situation. I have had enough contact with the law to know that what should happen and what really happens are often two different things. Thanks.

Hello Jivah,
My advice is don't buy the property unless your willing to face possible high legal costs or huge costs for putting in a well. I have experiance of putting in wells and water systems and I can tell you that as "Lulu" stated it might cost 10,000 euro's but it could cost 50,000 euro's. The problem with water is all dependant on terrian of your property and the relavant water table. Also if your in a mountain region it might not be possible to dig a well at all.
Unless your totally in love with this property and willing to pay what ever the costs are forget it buy another.

I think the cost of sinking a well would be huge, what I was trying to work out is the legal side. Is anyone entitled to water even if it is on someone elses land? it looks to me like the neighbour has spent a lot of money on his water supply, I find it difficult to believe that I am entitled to a supply of his water simply because it is there?

Jivah,
The answer to that question is "NO" you don't have any rights to his water.

[quote=il cacciatore;82196]Jivah,
The answer to that question is "NO" you don't have any rights to his water.[/quote]

Thats what I thought the situation would be, thanks.

Of course the agent would say this, can he prove it though - you could either install an artesian well costs around €5000 or you could ask the current owners to have an artesian well drilled & pay them instead this way you'd be sure of buying a property with water - a very essential thing in Italy - last summer it didnt rain at all between June & September. I would be tempted to forget it and look for a property with its own artesian well. Dont be pushed into buying something which looks nice but is not practicable. No Italian would buy a property without the essential water supply. Good Luck
Diddy

Everybody seems to be jumping the gun a bit on this query. jivah is 'looking at a house', and the agent assures him he has rights to the water from the spring on his neighbour's land. Why immediately doubt the word of the agent? As luluprimavera correctly points out, any rights pertaining to this water should be written into the final deed of sale, but before this final act is done it is not rocket science to discover whether this right does, in fact, exist. It wouldn't be uncommon for such a right to exist.

That doesn't mean that water will come 'at no cost' to jivah's prospective property. If the right to the water exists, the pipework and associated pump, cistern, etc. may not!

It is worth investigating further, and also perhaps getting an estimate for a well. (The person who is saying that if you are on a rocky mountain a well is going to be impossibly expensive is talking rubbish. Modern wells (boreholes) are drilled with serious equipment which can cope with granite, and a rocky mountain is almost certainly going to yield excellent quality water in decent quantities. The ball-park of €10,000 is a sensible estimate.)

[quote=jivah;82186]I am looking at a property which has no water supply, the neighbour has one which is from a spring further up the hill on his land. He has offered to share this supply with me but at a huge cost, my agent tells me that I have a right to this water and that the neighbour cannot deny me access and that I don't need to pay him anything. Does anyone know what the legal position is and how difficult it is to sort it out?

Thanks.[/quote]

"Run ,Forrest, Run"

[quote=deborahandricky;82233]"Run ,Forrest, Run"[/quote]

nice answer :)

[quote=jivah;82186]I am looking at a property which has no water supply, the neighbour has one which is from a spring further up the hill on his land. He has offered to share this supply with me but at a huge cost, my agent tells me that I have a right to this water and that the neighbour cannot deny me access and that I don't need to pay him anything. Does anyone know what the legal position is and how difficult it is to sort it out?

Thanks.[/quote]

Reading this it sounds like the only option to you is getting water from a neighbours well.We live at ,1.200 feet...over 2kms from our nearest neighbours..over three from the nearest village..we simply asked the water company to bring in a line,which they did very quickly (over 1km of 16 atmophere tubing buried) for around 300 euro.the water meter is 10 metres from the house (where aur responsability starts) up to the meter is their story.The cost of metred water here is ridiculously low.After that should you want to start putting in rain water storage tanks..dig wells etc thats all an extra option.although you have to get permission to dig a well anyway.

Would be interested to know which company did this for €300 as we had to pay over €500 for our meter & then were quoted €2000 per linear metre for CIIP to bury the pipe. (we even got 3 different people to ask about this to see if they were trying to pull a fast one). Consequently we have an unburied water pipe at the moment. With regards to water rights- you legally do have a right to water & legally you do not have to pay anyone to bring it from or through their land, however we know from experience that not legally having to pay and your neighbour expecting you to pay are 2 different things!