Groundwater Problem/Drainage easement removed

[chaparral66]

Hello all,

My situation is, the home my wife and I purchased in March 2005 has sever ground water issues. Our basement has already flooded 5 times, and we are in the midst of another possible flood as I type.

Shortly after we moved in, I became aware of a drainage easement that used to exist on the lot 4 lots down from my property. Someone (not sure who owned it at the time, but I believe it was government property, either city or county) decided the drainage easement was not needed and sold it to a developer. They back-filled it, built a house, and sold it sometime in 2001.

My question is, do I have any legal recourse to force the city or county to:
A) fix the ground water problem, or
B) force them to declare the house uninhabitable as is (with a basement), and purchase it from me, considering they removed the drainage easement?

 

[army judge]

I doubt that you have any legal recourse against the municipality.

If I were you I'd do two things:
1-Speak with the municipality or your elected city official about your problem;
2-Discuss your concerns with an attorney or two (the initial consultation is often free)

Don't get your hopes up.
I suspect you'll be left to your devices in the end.

It never hurts to try.

 

[chaparral66]

Thanks for the quick reply. I'm willing to try anything at this point. If there wasn't the issue of the removal of the easement, I would have no other choice but to simply walk away; I could never pass this problem onto some other poor slob. I'm definitely on the pessimistic side on this issue, but if you don't ask....