Real vs personal property
Subsurface rights
The right to the earth beneath the surface of a parcel
Part of the bundle that comes with land, and severable from it: an owner can sell or lease what lies below while keeping what sits on top. Once they are severed the surface owner and the subsurface owner are different people with different rights in one parcel.
How the exam asks about it
Paired with air rights and surface rights as the three vertical layers. Severance is the examinable idea — split them and they travel separately from then on.
Quick check: Subsurface rights
One question. Pick an answer to see the explanation.
Which term is being defined: “The right to the earth beneath the surface of a parcel”?
Related terms
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