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| I am STEALING YOUR land! |
In an article titled “10 Things Your Neighbor Won’t Tell You” Quentin Fottrell lists this as #7…“I’m secretly stealing your land.” Some readers may not know what “adverse possession,” is. Adverse Possession is a process available by State Statute that allows the "possessor" of the land to gain title to another's real property without compensation. Certain requirements must be met though, the possession must be open, notorious, hostile, and continuous for a prescribed length of time. In Wisconsin we have three basic categories of this. And this article is NOT meant nor intended to be legal advice.
Some people claim that this doctrine is not fair, that it is a legalized form of theft. I do see that point, it can be. Unfortunately or Fortunately (depending on which side of this law one is coming from) the law looks at this doctrine as a method of correcting errors in land sales. It attempts to be as fair as possible, allowing the person who has title to, and pays taxes on the property a full 13 year advantage over someone who has neither, and a 3 year advantage over the person who has title, but doesn't pay the taxes. But the law also looks at the process as if someone doesn't "defend" their property and allows another to continuously occupy their property in a method that is open, notorious, and hostile for a prescribed period of time, that possibly they don't even believe that they own the property in question, or if they allow the process to go on, that they might not even care.
The real down side to this is that it more often that not is a very expensive process. The sad thing is that an inexpensive (by comparison) land survey would resolve any question. Knowing where your boundaries are can save many problems down the road, if you are in Wisconsin, give Bosshard Surveying a call at 920-293-4001, we can help you! We will show you exactly where your boundaries are, for much less than it could cost you! Don’t let someone else rob you of your valuable property.
- The first is Adverse Possession without "color" of Title, meaning that there is no claim to the property on the possessor's title. Under the law this property must be held for 20 years.
- Second, is Adverse Possession with "color" of Title. This means that for some reason there might be ambiguity in the title record that possibly both parties may have claim to the property (an overlap in the legal description). This provision requires only a 10 year possession.
- The third is similar to the second, except that the possessor is the person paying the taxes on the parcel. This provision allows the claim after only 7 years.
Some people claim that this doctrine is not fair, that it is a legalized form of theft. I do see that point, it can be. Unfortunately or Fortunately (depending on which side of this law one is coming from) the law looks at this doctrine as a method of correcting errors in land sales. It attempts to be as fair as possible, allowing the person who has title to, and pays taxes on the property a full 13 year advantage over someone who has neither, and a 3 year advantage over the person who has title, but doesn't pay the taxes. But the law also looks at the process as if someone doesn't "defend" their property and allows another to continuously occupy their property in a method that is open, notorious, and hostile for a prescribed period of time, that possibly they don't even believe that they own the property in question, or if they allow the process to go on, that they might not even care.
The real down side to this is that it more often that not is a very expensive process. The sad thing is that an inexpensive (by comparison) land survey would resolve any question. Knowing where your boundaries are can save many problems down the road, if you are in Wisconsin, give Bosshard Surveying a call at 920-293-4001, we can help you! We will show you exactly where your boundaries are, for much less than it could cost you! Don’t let someone else rob you of your valuable property.
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