How to Verify Legal Access to Arizona Land

Physical access vs. legal access

Physical access means you can actually get to the land: there is a road, a two-track or open ground you can drive across. Legal access means you have a recorded right to cross whatever lies between your parcel and a public road. The two often do not line up in rural Arizona.

• A ranch road may lead right to your parcel, but if it crosses a neighbor's land with no recorded easement, your right to use it may depend on the neighbor's goodwill.
• A subdivision plat may show a dedicated road to your lot that was never built. You have legal access on paper but may not be able to drive there.

Arizona law uses both ideas. For county minor land division reviews, A.R.S. 11-831 describes legal access as a public right of vehicular ingress and egress to the lots being created, and requires a statement from a licensed surveyor or engineer on whether each lot has physical access "traversable by a two-wheel drive passenger motor vehicle." That two-wheel-drive standard is a useful benchmark for any rural parcel.

Where legal access comes from

Frontage on a public road

The simplest case: the parcel borders a road that is a dedicated public right-of-way. Confirm that the road is actually public, not just used by the public.

A recorded easement

An access easement is a recorded document, or a provision in a deed or plat, giving your parcel the right to cross another parcel. It is recorded with the county recorder. Read it carefully: it should describe where the easement runs, how wide it is, and which parcels benefit from it. See our guide to easements on Arizona land.

A platted road

In a recorded subdivision, the plat shows the roads. If the plat dedicates them to public use or grants the lot owners rights over them, that is legal access on paper.

Platted roads vs. built roads

In some older rural subdivisions, roads exist on the recorded plat but were never built. The plat is still legal access, but if the road was never graded, you may need to build it yourself before a car, a well rig or a concrete truck can reach the lot. Conversely, the road everyone drives may not follow the platted right-of-way at all. Compare the GIS map, satellite imagery and the recorded plat.

Public road vs. county-maintained road

A road can be public without the county maintaining it. Arizona's seller disclosure affidavit for rural land asks whether the road is publicly maintained, privately maintained or not maintained, which reflects how common each situation is. If the county does not maintain the road, ask who does, whether there is a road maintenance agreement, and what it costs. The county public works or roads department can tell you which roads it maintains.

Step-by-step: verifying access

1. Look at the map. Pull up the parcel on the county GIS (see our county GIS map directory) and satellite imagery. Note which road you would use and every parcel it crosses.
2. Read the deed and legal description for any easement granted along with the land.
3. Check the plat if the parcel is in a subdivision. Plats are recorded with the county recorder.
4. Search the recorder's index for easements recorded against the parcels between yours and the public road.
5. Order a title report or commitment. A title company will list recorded easements affecting the parcel. Ask the title officer to point out any easement or road that connects the parcel to a public road.
6. Ask the county whether the access road is a public road and whether it is county-maintained.
7. Drive it, ideally in an ordinary two-wheel-drive car, and after rain if possible. Washes can cut roads.
8. Get a survey if anything is unclear. A licensed surveyor can show where the road and easement actually sit relative to the boundary.

Disclosure: A.R.S. 33-422

When someone sells five or fewer unsubdivided parcels in an unincorporated area, A.R.S. 33-422 requires an affidavit of disclosure. It must reach the buyer at least seven days before the transfer, and the buyer has five days after receiving it to rescind. Access items on the affidavit include whether there is legal access as defined in A.R.S. 11-831, whether there is physical access, whether the roads are publicly maintained, privately maintained or not maintained, and whether a statement from a licensed surveyor or engineer is available. The statute also says liability waivers in the affidavit are void.

For larger marketing of unsubdivided land (six or more lots of 36 to under 160 acres), A.R.S. 32-2195 requires notice to the Arizona Real Estate Commissioner, including access shown by a licensed engineer or surveyor.

If the land has no legal access

A parcel without legal access is usually called landlocked. It is not hopeless, but it limits what an owner or buyer can do. Options include:

• Negotiate an easement with a neighbor and record it.
• Buy a strip of land that connects to a public road.
• Private way of necessity. Under A.R.S. 12-1201 and 12-1202, an owner whose land needs a private way for its proper use may bring a court action to condemn one across another's land, paying compensation. A private way can include a road as well as power lines and pipelines. This is a lawsuit, so talk to an Arizona real estate attorney about whether it fits your facts.
• Look for an unrecorded right. Long, open use of a road can sometimes create rights, but proving it is a legal matter; an attorney can advise.

Why it matters for value

A buyer who cannot legally reach a parcel cannot count on building there or getting utilities to it, and a parcel without a drivable road may need road work before it can be used. Access belongs near the top of any due diligence checklist, and it affects how land is valued.

If you own a parcel without clear access and would rather sell than fight it, our page on selling landlocked land in Arizona explains how First 48 Offers handles it.

General information, not legal, tax or survey advice. First 48 Offers LLC is a real estate investment company that buys land. It is not a law firm, brokerage, surveyor or title company. Arizona statutes, county procedures and agency boundaries change, and every parcel turns on its own facts. Verify anything important with the county, the agency named, or an Arizona attorney before relying on it.