Okay, the secret is out. I am currently studying for my bar exam. In the process, I must study real property law and other areas of law that pertain to real estate and may be helpful to a real estate or land investor. I figured since I was studying anyways, I might as well put each topic one video at a time. I also started a YouTube channel which can be seen here.
A property, land or real estate can be acquired by adverse possession. This happens when a rightful owner of a piece of real estate does not eject someone in possession of the land. There are 5 requirements for someone to obtain title to a piece of land by adverse possession:
- The Statutory Period: Every State has a required period of time that the possessor must be in possession of the property in order to gain title by adverse possession. This is called the statutory period.
- Actual & Exclusive Possession: The person trying to get the property must be in actual possession of the property and have exclusive possession. This means that they can not plant a flag and leave to claim the property. This also means they can not share the property with someone else.
- Open & Notorious: This mean that in order to get property by adverse possession the person can not be hiding. They must possess the property in an open manner that would put the owner on alert of they were diligent.
- Hostile: This means they must be in possession of property without the owners permission.
- Continuous: This means they must have the property in their possession for a continuous period. It would not be enough to occupy the property during the winters only and leave when the owners return every summers.
To reiterate, in order to aquire title to a property by adverse possession, one must have (1) actual and exclusive possession of the property, (2) he must be in open and notorious possession of the property, (3) he must have the property for the mandatory statutory period, (4) the possession must be continuous throughout the statutory period and (5) it must be hostile to the owners interest. Let me explain....
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