The Rhode Island General Assembly recently passed new legislation that aims to protect property owners from any surprises that may arise from buying property located on the coastline.
The law, which was sponsored by state Sen. Victoria Gu and state Rep. Terri Cortvriend, requires all sellers of oceanfront property to clearly disclose any public access rights that apply to the property. This includes any permits or rights that may be required to access the shoreline, up to a point 10 feet above the recognizable high tide line.
According to a news release, the new law also requires sellers to provide a copy of any Coastal Resources Management Council permits that are in their possession. The law also advises buyers to contact the CRMC if they have any questions about public access to the property.
The legislation builds on a law passed by the Rhode Island General Assembly last year which also requires all property owners to disclose any known public access rights to the property.
“This legislation builds on the historic shoreline access law that we passed last year,” said Senator Gu. “A lot of people in Rhode Island are now aware of the new law but a lot of people coming in from other states to buy property aren’t necessarily aware of it. This is an important consumer protection and education measure to ensure that people buying ocean front real estate understand the public’s right to access the shoreline.”
“As we have seen in the news recently, sometimes when houses are sold permits aren’t passed on to buyers and rights of way are forgotten, leading to a potential rude awakening for buyers and putting public access to our shores under threat,” Cortvriend added. “This legislation will make sure permits stay with a property and no one is surprised when Rhode Islanders enjoy their constitutional right to enjoy our coasts.”
Generative artificial intelligence (AI) assisted a What’sUpNewp journalist with the reporting included in this story.
