A beginner avoiding disaster

[Selina Rifkin]

We are looking for our first investment property. One of the houses we considered was in a desirable town and was a bargain. But the neighbor glared at us when we looked at the house and I had a bad feeling about it. The driveway was odd, with the neighbor at the top with a paved road going from her house down the opposite side of the hill, but she still came up the apparently common gravel driveway. I went to the town hall to find out if she had a right of way. When I gave the address, the clerk said "oh THAT house." The neighbor had gone to the trouble to go to court to establish a legal right of way! Lots of bad blood there apparently. But we certainly dodged a bullet on that one. 

Although if the house we have a bid on doesn't go through, it might be a good exercise to see what that right of way is worth to her...