What is the name of your state (only U.S. law)? California
Hi all,
I have a friend that is in an interesting situation. He is a professional that lives in a well off southern California city and got into a big fight with his wife. She kicked him out of the house and being the rugged outdoorsman that he is, is camped out on top of a nearby mountain near where we used to go rock climbing in College. He's been up there for 3 weeks so far. Things are still on the rocks with his wife and he seems to like it up there. I have visited him a couple of times and joked that he should pay the property tax and it would eventually be his. Well, I read a bit more about it and researched who owns the property. No one seems to care that he is there. There are 4 foot tall trees growing in the middle of the road. Nobody has at least driven there in at least 15 years. I found that the land is owned by a wealthy elderly gentleman for many decades and has never done anything with it. It is a significant amount of land worth between 4-8million undeveloped and up to 30 million developed.
My friend lives an hour and fifteen minutes from work. He will regularly go there and work 16 hour days and sleep at a friends house up to 5 or so days in a row. Then he will have a week or two off where he can sleep on the mountain. I read that the land must be continually occupied and that you must treat it like your own. He is a busy guy and will often arrive at his house late and leave early.
1. Is my friends schedule consistent with an adverse possession claim? What does case law suggest about: the minimum amount of time spent on the property, Appropriate reasons for leaving for a short time, Evidence admitted by the owner that he showed up and nobody was there.
I have read that you need to fence the land or, put another way, exclude the real owner. Is this true? or do you just need to be there? Some parts of the property are so steep and covered with rocks and bushes that they almost serve as a natural barrier. There is one fence that is locked on the road in. It is apparent that the fence has not been opened in many years.
2. Would simply changing the lock on the gate satisfy this requirement of excluding the owner and not having to fence the entire property or just possess the property? What does case law suggest?
I have read that you need to occupy the property as your own and "improve" the property in some way. What if he built a small one room structure with a small water tank? Planted trees and cut all of the bushes out of the road so you could drive in there? Put up his own mailbox and received all his mail there etc. Anything else he should document? How much improvement is really needed? What does case law suggest?
I have read all of the very general information about adverse possession and understand the basic concepts. What I lack are the details to help my friend come out at the end of 5 years successfully.
Thanks for your help.
Hi all,
I have a friend that is in an interesting situation. He is a professional that lives in a well off southern California city and got into a big fight with his wife. She kicked him out of the house and being the rugged outdoorsman that he is, is camped out on top of a nearby mountain near where we used to go rock climbing in College. He's been up there for 3 weeks so far. Things are still on the rocks with his wife and he seems to like it up there. I have visited him a couple of times and joked that he should pay the property tax and it would eventually be his. Well, I read a bit more about it and researched who owns the property. No one seems to care that he is there. There are 4 foot tall trees growing in the middle of the road. Nobody has at least driven there in at least 15 years. I found that the land is owned by a wealthy elderly gentleman for many decades and has never done anything with it. It is a significant amount of land worth between 4-8million undeveloped and up to 30 million developed.
My friend lives an hour and fifteen minutes from work. He will regularly go there and work 16 hour days and sleep at a friends house up to 5 or so days in a row. Then he will have a week or two off where he can sleep on the mountain. I read that the land must be continually occupied and that you must treat it like your own. He is a busy guy and will often arrive at his house late and leave early.
1. Is my friends schedule consistent with an adverse possession claim? What does case law suggest about: the minimum amount of time spent on the property, Appropriate reasons for leaving for a short time, Evidence admitted by the owner that he showed up and nobody was there.
I have read that you need to fence the land or, put another way, exclude the real owner. Is this true? or do you just need to be there? Some parts of the property are so steep and covered with rocks and bushes that they almost serve as a natural barrier. There is one fence that is locked on the road in. It is apparent that the fence has not been opened in many years.
2. Would simply changing the lock on the gate satisfy this requirement of excluding the owner and not having to fence the entire property or just possess the property? What does case law suggest?
I have read that you need to occupy the property as your own and "improve" the property in some way. What if he built a small one room structure with a small water tank? Planted trees and cut all of the bushes out of the road so you could drive in there? Put up his own mailbox and received all his mail there etc. Anything else he should document? How much improvement is really needed? What does case law suggest?
I have read all of the very general information about adverse possession and understand the basic concepts. What I lack are the details to help my friend come out at the end of 5 years successfully.
Thanks for your help.
