Expert: Dick Dennis - 1/5/2012

Question
Hi, and Happy New year! I just read an article that states squatters are cashing in on a lot of land and homes in Texas by using adverse possession. Basically, I know what adverse possession is, but I have some concerns. I live on 10.26 acres of land in Central Virginia. I am the owner with a mortgage and my wife is the co-owner also on the deed. So, I live here, I pay taxes based on 10.26 acres of land, but do I actually have to walk my land every so often or post it in order to avoid adverse possession, or is adverse possession basically used when land is uninhabited??? A large portion of my land is extremely steep with lots of fallen trees and it is nearly impossible to walk it, although I do hunt on it each year. So, can someone just pay a filing fee and use parts of my land because I don't use it? If you pay your taxes and live here, how can somebody "take" your property from you?
Thanks!

Answer
One of the requirements for a successful adverse possession, Joe, is that the person who is trying to take over the land must pay the taxes for the WHOLE property and as long as you have paid the taxes as required, it's not very likely they are going to be able to move the title to their name.

Ten acres isn't that large of a parcel that would allow anyone to hike or drive over it without leaving some evidence of having been there. There would have to be a trail or road created if they made it a habit of going over the land. That is one of the responsibilities of actually owning a larger parcel bigger than a simple residence pad. If there is any evidence of someone crossing over your property, you simply put up a "No trespassing" sign. Depending on the terrain, for one day a year a chain of some kind is hung across any access, probably nearby the "no trespassing" sign. Or you can just leave the chain there. Period.

Another requirement to confiscate land is to possess it with hostility (obviously). Upon making application with an attorney to take over the land, the hostile person would have to show that he indeed did live or use the property for the specified amount of time. Each state has their own requirements for a successful adverse possession. Most of the states require 20 years before actually abiding by the requirements before taking title (not to mention paying the taxes for all that time).

I recommend you Google Virginia adverse possession. Some attorney will probably give you the exact requirements for your atate. I do wish you well.

Dick Dennis
dixiedee13@aol.com