What is Land Use and Zoning Law?
Land use and zoning law regulates public and private real estate use and development. Municipalities use zoning to control property development. Closely allied legal concerns include easements, trespassing, and eminent domain. If you're in Montgomery County, Bucks County, or the greater Philadelphia area, talk to a land use and zoning attorney near you in our Doylestown and Norristown, PA law offices. They can help you work with local municipalities to get the job done.
We're experts in this area. In fact, U.S. News cited our firm with a Best Law Firm ranking. We received a national ranking as a Tier 1 law firm for Land Use & Zoning Law. In addition, we picked up a second national ranking as a Tier 3 firm for Real Estate Litigation.
How Zoning Regulations Work
Zoning regulations divide a municipality into residential, commercial, and industrial zones. Zoning laws seek to retain efficiencies within the municipality and optimize zones for their intended use. For example, zoning laws prevent a shopping mall from opening across the street from a neighborhood.
Zoning laws also regulate building types within each zone and the location of utility lines, parking, and other regulations. Zoning laws, for instance, may place height restrictions on buildings within a zone. Again, a local land use and zoning attorney will know these regulations and rules.
As mentioned, other concepts associated with land use and zoning include:
- Easement: An easement provides limited, non-ownership interest in another party's property. You might have required an easement, for example, to use a neighbor's driveway to access a property.
- Eminent Domain: Eminent domain refers to the government's power to take private land for public use under certain circumstances. For example, the government might take someone's house to build a police station.
- Trespassing: Trespassing refers to various offenses against a person or property. As it relates to real estate law, it means entering onto land without the owner's consent.
Depending on your issue, you should consider talking with a land use and zoning attorney specializing in this legal area. You can also speak to a real estate attorney or municipal lawyer.
The Land Use and Zoning Attorneys at Our Law Firm Can Help
We're an established and recognized real estate law firm with offices in Bucks County and Montgomery County. As a result, each land use and zoning attorney at our law offices possess an intimate knowledge of the workings of the County government and its local communities.
In addition, our land use and zoning attorneys have significant experience throughout southeastern Pennsylvania counties, including Philadelphia, Chester, Delaware, Lehigh, and Berks. Our familiarity with local governmental bodies and other approval agencies in each of these counties enhances our ability to advocate for the needs of our real estate development clients.
Our real estate lawyers approach the land development approval process as a consensus-building effort whenever possible. We work with each municipality and its residents to support or mitigate opposition to a project during the approval process.
However, when necessary, we litigate development approval issues and our client's rights to assure that laws governing the approval process get administered and applied appropriately.
Trust our land use and zoning attorneys, real estate attorneys, and municipal lawyers to provide the legal insights and support to make your project a success. Call our real estate law offices today.
