Alfano Law Office, PLLC

Alfano Law Office, PLLC
Phone: (603) 856-8411 • Fax (603) 290-5521
4 Park Street, Concord, NH 03301
  • Home
  • Real Estate Law
    • Road Law
    • Commercial Real Estate Law
    • Tax Abatements
    • Business Law
  • Estate Planning
  • About Us
    • Paul J. Alfano, Real Estate Attorney
    • John F. Hayes, Attorney
    • Terrie Harman, Attorney
    • Privacy Policy
  • Articles
  • Contact Us
    • Directions
  • Road Law Guide
  • NH Tax Abatement
    • Tax Abatement Team
    • Grounds for Abatement
    • Municipal Application
    • Owners of Properties Outside New Hampshire
    • Transfer Tax Allocation
    • Recent Laws and Rulings
  • Resources and Links
    • Allobar Strategies
    • Calendar and Key Dates
    • Equalization Ratio
    • NAPTA
  • Covid-19 Updates
You are here: Home / New Hampshire Property Tax Alerts / October 2017 Property tax exemptions; Evictions – landlords can be too nice; Easements – can you prevent others from using your easement?

October 2017 Property tax exemptions; Evictions – landlords can be too nice; Easements – can you prevent others from using your easement?

Don’t mess-up the tax exemption for municipal real estate.
New Hampshire exempts real estate owned by municipalities from the state real estate tax except where the property is used or occupied by a non-exempt party under a lease or other agreement requiring that party to pay the taxes.  RSA 72:23. But what happens if that party sublicenses the property to a third party, and the sublicense agreement is silent on the issue of taxes?  In Segtel, Inc. v. City of Nashua (June 9, 2017),  Fairpoint had a license from Nashua to place poles and conduits over city-owned rights of way.  The license agreement included a requirement that Fairpoint pay property taxes pursuant to RSA 72:23(I).  Good so far.  Fairpoint then entered into a pole attachment agreement with Segtel, which operates a fiber optic cable network.  The pole attachment agreement was silent on the issue of property taxes.  The city sent tax bills to Segtel, and Segtel objected, claiming the exception to the real estate tax exemption did not apply to them.  The supreme court agreed with Segtel.  To be liable to pay real estate taxes, i.e., to be subject to the “exception to the exemption,” a party needs to both use or occupy the real estate in question, and be subject to an agreement obligating it to pay the taxes.  Although Segtel “used or occupied” the real estate in question, it was not subject to an agreement requiring it to pay taxes; therefore, it was not liable to the city for the taxes.
So the lesson for anyone licensing municipal rights of way is to make sure any sublicense agreement requires the sub-licensee to pay the property tax.

Notifying tenant of default – being too nice can be fatal.  

In notifying a tenant of a default under the lease, the landlord needs to clearly state the tenant is in default and that the consequences of the default include eviction, assuming the landlord intends to then pursue an eviction.  Being “too nice” in the letter can be fatal.  Here, the landlord’s letter notified the tenant the lease did not give the tenant the right to provide live music to patrons, and then it stated “you can proceed with the music this month, however no later until you have a conversation with [the landlord].”  The court found this letter was insufficient to then initial an eviction action.  Lesson for landlords:  when sending default notices, make sure they contain “sufficient detail to establish that the tenants were advised of the specific lease obligation that they were breaching and how they were breaching it in a manner that would put them on notice that their failure to correct the breach would subject them to eviction.” 102 Plaza, Inc. v. Jared Stevens et al. (July 12, 2017 3JX – does not create precedence).

Amazing but true – 
We all know using someone else’s land without the consent of the owner may be a trespass, giving the owner the right to bring an action to oust the trespasser.  But how about the holder of an easement?  Can someone with an easement over someone else’s land bring an action to prevent another person from passing over the same land?  In Carlson, Trustee v. Latvian Lutheran Exile Church of Boston and Vicinity Patrons, Inc. (Sept. 21, 2017), the New Hampshire Supreme Court looked at this issue from a few different legal theories, but the bottom line came out pretty much the same: the holder of a non-exclusive easement may oust a third party provided the third party’s use, or proposed use, interferes with the easement holder’s use and enjoyment of their easement. Also, the easement in question was not exclusive, meaning the owner of the land reserved the right to grant other people rights to use the land.  Had the easement been exclusive, then the rights of the easement holder perhaps would include the right to oust a third party even where the third party is not interfering with the easement holder’s use and enjoyment of their easement.

Filed Under: New Hampshire Property Tax Alerts Tagged With: Legislation, property tax

The above information is for informational purposes only and does not constitute legal advice.

Important Registry Updates
Important Court Updates

Subscribe to the Alfano Law Property Rights Alert

Sign Up Now

For Email Newsletters you can trust.
Allobar Strategies

NH Tax Abatement

  • Road Law Guide
  • NH Tax Abatement
    • Tax Abatement Team
    • Grounds for Abatement
    • Municipal Application
    • Owners of Properties Outside New Hampshire
    • Transfer Tax Allocation
    • Recent Laws and Rulings
  • Resources and Links
    • Allobar Strategies
    • Calendar and Key Dates
    • Equalization Ratio
    • NAPTA
  • Covid-19 Updates

NH Real Estate Law Articles

  • Common Neighborly Legal Issues
  • Court Updates
  • Easements
  • Estate Planning
  • General
  • Historic Designation
  • Legal Terms
  • Legislation
    • Business Law
  • New Hampshire Property Tax Alerts
  • Private Road Maintenance
  • Private Roads
  • Property
  • Property Investments
  • Property Rights
  • Property Tax Law
  • Quieting Title
  • Real Estate Law
  • Revocable Trust
  • Road Law
  • Tax Abatement
  • Taxes
  • Zoning Boards of Adjustments

Recent Articles

Private Roads and Easements – What’s the Difference?

You probably think there should be a difference between … [Read More...]

Environmental Clean Up on a Property – Who is Responsible?

Environmental issues are everywhere. Hazards like heavy … [Read More...]

Reasons to Review Your Estate Plan

Have you taken the time to set up your estate plan? If you … [Read More...]

What to Know About Maintaining, Repairing, and Extending Easements on a Property

An easement is a piece of land that people, other than the … [Read More...]

Article Archives

  • June 2022
  • May 2022
  • April 2022
  • March 2022
  • February 2022
  • January 2022
  • December 2021
  • November 2021
  • October 2021
  • September 2021
  • August 2021
  • July 2021
  • June 2021
  • May 2021
  • April 2021
  • March 2021
  • January 2021
  • December 2020
  • November 2020
  • October 2020
  • September 2020
  • August 2020
  • July 2020
  • June 2020
  • May 2020
  • March 2020
  • February 2020
  • January 2020
  • December 2019
  • November 2019
  • October 2019
  • September 2019
  • August 2019
  • July 2019
  • June 2019
  • May 2019
  • April 2019
  • March 2019
  • February 2019
  • January 2019
  • December 2018
  • November 2018
  • October 2018
  • September 2018
  • August 2018
  • July 2018
  • June 2018
  • May 2018
  • April 2018
  • March 2018
  • October 2017
  • May 2017
  • April 2017
  • March 2017
  • February 2017
  • January 2017
  • November 2016
  • October 2016
  • September 2016
  • August 2016
  • June 2016
  • April 2016
  • March 2016
  • January 2016
  • December 2015
  • October 2015
  • September 2015
  • August 2015
  • July 2015
  • June 2015
  • May 2015
  • April 2015
  • March 2015
  • February 2015
  • January 2015
  • December 2014
  • November 2014
  • September 2014
  • August 2014
  • June 2013
  • February 2012
  • December 2011
  • May 2011
  • July 2010
  • December 2005
  • Facebook
  • LinkedIn
  • Twitter

Alfano Law Office, PLLC, 4 Park Street, Concord, NH 03301 USA | Phone: (603) 856-8411
Copyright © 2022 · Alfano Law Office, PLLC. All Rights Reserved · Website design by InterActive Synergy, LLC