Although oil is no longer the main driving force behind the Texas economy, an intricate web of high-pressure gas and petroleum pipeline easements still criss-cross the state. The major institutional investors, FNMA, FHLMC, FHA and VA, usually impose various requirements when pipeline easements are present on real property serving as security for mortgage loan transactions. Each of these investors has its own set of underwriting guidelines; therefore, it is not always clear how to treat the presence of pipeline easements in a particular transaction. This memorandum attempts to summarize each of these investors’ guidelines concerning the treatment of pipeline easements in a residential real property transaction.
