Please read the home page for the basic FAQ. Here are some more questions that come to mind – send us a message if you have others.
Who is Responsible for What Part of the Road, and What are the Liability Implications?
I asked Lane County Public Works the first part of this question. Homeowners are responsible for these roads, but state law does not address whether a homeowner is responsible just for the portion of the road in front of their house, or for the whole LAR, together with all other homeowners – it just indicates that the county and its officers bear no responsibility (ORS 368.031).
It’s therefore not clear whether every homeowner could choose a different solution to poor road conditions for their portion, nor whether you could be held liable for injury or property damage due to a pothole only in front of your house, or also for one down the street – and it’s not clear whether a lawsuit against you in either case would succeed or not.
Do not assume though that if you were sued for injuries arising from road conditions, that your homeowners insurance company would protect you – my insurance company has stated that such incidents would not be covered under their policy because homeowners do not own the road.
The uncertainty surrounding maintenance responsibility and liability risks makes one thing clear:
LARs were never meant to be a long-term solution for paved residential roads serving dozens of homes. This system must change.
What If Some of My Neighbors and I Feel Road Maintenance Is Needed and Others Do Not – How Could It Be Financed?
It may be possible to collect voluntary contributions to fill a few potholes, but what if the road needs major repairs? If you don’t want to subsidize neighbors who refuse to pay, there is only one County-approved process:
1. Gather signatures from 60% of homeowners to petition the county.
2. The project would require multiple approvals, including:
- Evaluation against prioritization criteria.
- Inclusion in the Capital Improvement Program.
- A public hearing before the Transportation Advisory Committee.
- Final approval by the Board of Commissioners.
3. The county would then impose assessments on all homeowners and place liens on those who don’t pay.
The Lane County Transportation Planning Department has explained that “The Board has been opposed to assessment projects in the past, so any objectors would be able to influence their decision. Assessment and liens are not popular.”
What does this mean in reality?
- The County is unlikely to approve an assessment unless the road is in severe disrepair and of major public interest.
- If homeowners can’t agree to fund urgent repairs, they most likely won’t agree to fund preventive maintenance.
The county never required LAR homeowners to establish homeowner associations (HOAs) that could legally collect dues to fund road maintenance. Because of this, there has never been a viable system for maintaining these paved roads with dozens of homes on them.
(And today, forming an HOA in an existing neighborhood would presumably require 100% homeowner agreement—almost impossible to achieve.)
How Does a Home Being on an LAR Affect Property Values?
Currently it’s unclear how much LAR status affects property values. There is a regulation requiring home sellers to disclose LAR status to potential buyers – but complying is difficult since most homeowners don’t know they live on an LAR. (I have yet to meet anyone who has been able to find LAR disclosure in their home purchase paperwork.)
Given this, particularly in cases where the road is not in bad condition, it probably doesn’t affect values much. However, where the road is in bad condition and LAR status is common knowledge, we can probably assume that it has a negative impact.
The Impact is About to Get Worse
The county is working on a project to integrate LAR status into the online Easy Property Lookup System, where tax and property information can be accessed for any property in Lane County.
- This data will be fed to Realtors’ Multiple Listing Services (MLS).
- It will likely also appear on Zillow, Redfin, and other real estate platforms.
- This means LAR status will become much more visible. This is a good thing in that home buyers have a right to know, but it will increase the likelihood that LAR status negatively impacts your home’s value going forward.
Out of concern for housing affordability, politicians have in the past justified leaving these roads as LARs to keep home prices lower. We cannot allow this unjust, disparate treatment of LAR homeowners to continue simply to make housing cheaper for others at our expense.
Did I Overpay for My Home?
If LAR status wasn’t disclosed to you when you purchased, particularly if your road was in poor condition and you just assumed that government would take care of it: Would you have offered and been willing to pay less if you knew you were responsible for road maintenance? Here’s the potentially good news: If we can convince the Lane County Board of Commissioners to incorporate these LARs into the county road system, this would meet the expectations you had when you bought – that government will maintain your road – and in this sense you would be made whole. So join us in the fight!