An easement is a legal right that allows someone else to use part of a property for a specific purpose, such as access, drainage, or utility services. Easements can significantly affect how you or your clients use or develop a property, making it essential to check them early in your due diligence process.
With Landchecker, you can view registered easements online for properties across Australia. This article explains how to display easements on the map, understand different easement types, and access detailed easement documentation.
Why check easements?
Checking easements is important for:
Property developers: Understanding building restrictions and setback requirements imposed by easements
Architects and town planners: Designing developments that comply with easement restrictions and service authority requirements
Conveyancers and legal professionals: Conducting thorough due diligence during property transactions
Valuers: Assessing how easements impact property value and development potential
Homeowners and buyers: Identifying restrictions that may affect renovations, extensions, or future use of the property
Real estate agents: Advising clients about easements that may influence purchasing decisions
Easements can restrict where you can build structures, place swimming pools, plant large trees, or make other modifications to the land. Understanding easements early prevents costly design changes or legal issues later in the development process.
Easement coverage in Landchecker
Landchecker displays registered easement data for properties across Australia, including:
Victoria (VIC)
New South Wales (NSW)
Queensland (QLD)
Tasmania (TAS)
Australian Capital Territory (ACT)
Easement data is sourced directly from state and territory land registries and is updated regularly to reflect current registered easements. Coverage and the level of detail vary by jurisdiction, with some states providing more comprehensive easement mapping than others.
Access requirements
Easement visibility depends on your Landchecker plan level:
Standard plan members: Can view easement locations displayed in red on the map, but detailed easement types and descriptions are locked
Advanced and Enterprise plan members: Can view colour-coded easements by type, access easement descriptions in the right-hand side info panel, and include easement details in premium property reports
If you are on a Standard plan and need detailed easement information, you can upgrade to an Advanced plan to access comprehensive easement data.
How to view easements on a property
Step 1: Search for a property or land parcel
To view easements on a property, you first need to navigate to the specific property location on the Landchecker map.
Follow these steps:
Navigate to the Landchecker map at app.landchecker.com.au.
Use the address search bar at the top of the screen to search for the property.
Enter the property address, lot and plan number, or property identifier.
Select the correct property from the search results dropdown menu.
The map automatically zooms to the selected property and highlights the property boundary.
Alternatively, you can manually navigate the map by zooming and panning to your desired location, then click directly on the property boundary to select it.
Once the property is selected, the property information panel opens on the right-hand side of the screen, displaying key property details.
Step 2: Open the Planning Layers menu
The Planning Layers menu provides access to various planning controls and property constraints, including easements.
Follow these steps:
Locate the Planning Layers icon on the left-hand side panel of the screen. The icon appears as a layers symbol.
Click the Planning Layers icon to open the menu.
The Planning Layers menu expands to show all available data layers for the selected property location.
Scroll down through the list of available layers to locate Easements.
The Planning Layers menu contains numerous datasets including planning zones, overlays, heritage constraints, environmental controls, and infrastructure layers. You can activate multiple layers simultaneously to conduct comprehensive property assessments.
Step 3: Activate the easements layer
Activating the easements layer displays registered easements as coloured lines overlaid on the property boundary.
Follow these steps:
Within the Planning Layers menu, locate Easements in the list of available layers.
Tick the checkbox beside Easements to activate the layer.
Easement lines now appear on the map, showing the location and path of registered easements affecting the selected property.
The visual display of easements depends on your plan level:
Advanced plan members: Easements appear as colour-coded lines, with different colours representing different easement types (for example, blue for drainage easements, orange for service easements, green for access easements)
Standard plan members: Easements appear as red lines on the map without colour differentiation by type
Zoom in on the map for a closer view of easement locations relative to property boundaries and existing structures.
The easements layer remains active as you navigate across the map until you manually deactivate it by unticking the checkbox in the Planning Layers menu.
Step 4: View easement details in the property information panel
Once the easements layer is activated, detailed easement information becomes available in the property information panel (access level depends on your plan).
Follow these steps:
Ensure the property is selected on the map and the property information panel is open on the right-hand side of the screen.
Scroll down to the Planning Information section within the property panel.
Locate the Easements subsection within Planning Information.
For Advanced plan members, this section displays:
A list of all registered easements affecting the property
The easement type (for example, "Easement for Drainage," "Easement for Services," "Easement for Right of Way")
The dealing or instrument number associated with each easement
Additional details about the easement where available
For Standard plan members, the Easements section appears locked with a message prompting you to upgrade to access detailed easement information.
The dealing or instrument number is important for ordering complete easement documentation from the land registry, as it uniquely identifies each registered easement on the title.
Understanding colour-coded easements (Advanced plan)
Advanced plan members benefit from colour-coded easement display, making it easier to identify different easement types visually on the map.
Common colour codes include:
Blue lines: Easements for drainage or stormwater
Orange lines: Easements for services (utilities such as water, gas, electricity, telecommunications)
Green lines: Easements for access or right of way
Purple lines: Easements for support or party walls
Yellow lines: Other easement types or easements with multiple purposes
The colour coding helps you quickly assess the types of constraints affecting a property without needing to read detailed descriptions for each easement. This visual differentiation is particularly useful when comparing multiple properties or conducting rapid site assessments across large areas.
Download a property report with easement information
Property reports provide comprehensive documentation of easements for due diligence, client presentations, and development planning.
Follow these steps:
With the property selected on the map, locate the Property Report section in the property information panel on the right-hand side of the screen.
Click the View Report button.
The report customisation screen opens, allowing you to select which data layers to include in your report.
To create a focused easement report:
Untick all other data categories
Ensure the Easements checkbox is ticked
This creates a streamlined report containing only easement information
Alternatively, leave all relevant categories selected to generate a comprehensive property report that includes easements alongside planning zones, overlays, sales history, and other property data.
For Advanced plan members, you can create a branded premium report that includes:
Your company logo on the report cover
Customised cover design and branding elements
Professional formatting for client presentations
Click Download Report to create your PDF document.
The report is generated within seconds and can be saved to your device, printed, or shared with clients, stakeholders, or development teams.
Property reports include visual maps showing easement locations, detailed descriptions of each easement type, and the dealing or instrument numbers for further investigation.
Purchase detailed easement documents
The easements displayed on the Landchecker map are indicative and may represent one or more of the total registered easements on a property. For complete legal documentation and technical details about easements, you can purchase official easement documents directly through Landchecker.
Follow these steps:
First, identify the dealing number or instrument number for the easement you want to investigate. This information is available in the Easements section of the property information panel (for Advanced plan members) or from a title search.
Navigate to the Document Searches page by clicking the Document Searches link in the top navigation bar.
Select Standard Searches from the document search options.
Choose your state or territory from the dropdown menu (for example, Victoria, New South Wales, Queensland).
Enter the dealing number or instrument number in the search field.
Select the easement document type from the available document options.
Add the document to your shopping cart and proceed to checkout.
The easement document is delivered to your email and uploaded to your Order Manager, typically within minutes.
Official easement documents contain:
Complete legal descriptions of the easement
Technical diagrams showing the precise easement location and dimensions
Terms and conditions governing the easement use
Details about the benefitting and burdened land parcels
Information about any restrictions or obligations imposed by the easement
These documents provide the definitive legal record of easements and should be reviewed by conveyancers, lawyers, or planning professionals when conducting formal due diligence or preparing development applications.
Combining easements with other property data
For comprehensive property assessment, combine the easements layer with other available datasets in Landchecker.
High-resolution aerial imagery
View easements overlaid on high-resolution aerial imagery to:
See how easements relate to existing structures and site features
Identify whether buildings, pools, or other improvements encroach on easement areas
Assess available building area after accounting for easement setbacks
Plan development layouts that avoid easement conflicts
Activate high-resolution aerial imagery by clicking Map Type in the bottom left corner and selecting High-Res Aerial Imagery.
Planning zones and overlays
Layer easements with planning zones and overlays to:
Understand cumulative development constraints affecting the property
Assess how easements interact with other planning restrictions such as setbacks, building envelopes, or heritage controls
Identify opportunities and limitations for development applications
Activate planning zones and overlays from the Planning Layers menu by ticking the relevant checkboxes.
Property boundaries and dimensions
Use Landchecker's measurement tools alongside the easements layer to:
Calculate the width of easements across the property
Measure available building area after accounting for easement setbacks
Determine distances between easements and property boundaries
Assess frontage affected by access easements
Access measurement tools from the right-hand toolbar on the map.
Planning permits and development applications
View planning permits alongside easements to:
See how other developments in the area have addressed easement constraints
Identify planning precedents for building near or over easements
Understand council requirements for developments affected by easements
Activate the planning permits layer by clicking the clipboard icon in the left-hand menu and selecting Planning Permits.