Real property vs. personal property

[ETex2]

What is the name of your state? Texas

Is a boat dock and covered boat house, permanently attached via sunken pilings, owned and built by an adjoining property owner on a lake owned by the local municipality, along with electrical lines to this structure, considered to be real property or personal property?

The local water authority allowed me to build the dock, gave the permits, etc. just a few years ago, but has now revoked my access, stating that I must remove this "personal property" at my expense or they will file suit.

 

[nextwife]

Generally, anything beyond the high water mark of the dry land is the owner's "real property". Anything that extends beyond the high water mark toward the water is controlled by the applicable authority.

A "dock" is NOT a structure with walls.

Reread your submission and determine if what you built was fully in accordance with the submitted plans. If it extends into public water, it is not "real estate".

 

[HomeGuru]

What is the name of your state? Texas

Is a boat dock and covered boat house, permanently attached via sunken pilings, owned and built by an adjoining property owner on a lake owned by the local municipality, along with electrical lines to this structure, considered to be real property or personal property?

The local water authority allowed me to build the dock, gave the permits, etc. just a few years ago, but has now revoked my access, stating that I must remove this "personal property" at my expense or they will file suit.

**A: first you state that the boat dock and house owned and built by an adjoining property owner, then you state the authority allowed you to build the doc. Confusing.

 

[ETex2]

The plans were fully approved, and everything was built correctly. The local water authority owns and controls everything from 440 mean sea level (lake level when full) to 448 mean sea level. After four years, they've decided to sell this part of the lakefront to a buddy of the execitove director, a developer. I've already filed suit and lost due to lack of jurisdiction. I've also lost confidence in my attorney and will not employ him in any future litigation. He tells me the boat dock and boat house are considered "leasehold improvements". But there was never any lease. Just an ingress and egress permit renewed annually.

All I want to know right now is whether Texas law would consider the permanently attached improvements to their land as real property or personal property. Thanks.

 

[HomeGuru]

The plans were fully approved, and everything was built correctly. The local water authority owns and controls everything from 440 mean sea level (lake level when full) to 448 mean sea level. After four years, they've decided to sell this part of the lakefront to a buddy of the execitove director, a developer. I've already filed suit and lost due to lack of jurisdiction. I've also lost confidence in my attorney and will not employ him in any future litigation. He tells me the boat dock and boat house are considered "leasehold improvements". But there was never any lease. Just an ingress and egress permit renewed annually.

All I want to know right now is whether Texas law would consider the permanently attached improvements to their land as real property or personal property. Thanks.

**A: yours is not a simple case with a simple answer. Consult a RE attorney.

 

[ETex2]

Here's a twist to this story. The only "personal property" subject to ad valorem taxes in the state of Texas is "business personal property". Yet the local appraisal district has always included the added value of boat houses, docks, etc. on this lake in their market value estimates and assessed values.

I think the chief appraiser of the appraisal district may have a fit once he finds out that the executive director and attorney for the lake authority has issued such a statement. The lakefront owners will surely be interested to know that they've been overtaxed for years if his statement bears weight. This attorney also owns a title company, so I guess he should know what he's talking about. The only higher authority to go to would probably be the local courts or the state attorney general.

 

[FlyingRon]

The definition of real property for tax assessment doesn't need to meet the requirement for others.

The presence of the dock, even if it is on leased property from whomever owns the late, probably increases the VALUE of the real property that has access to it.

 

[ETex2]

The definition of real property for tax assessment doesn't need to meet the requirement for others.

The presence of the dock, even if it is on leased property from whomever owns the late, probably increases the VALUE of the real property that has access to it.

Every lakefront owner has the opportunity to build a dock or boat house within their guidelines, so that additional value is in the land itself. But a house with a $100,000 boat house increases the overall value by a significant amount vs. a lakefront property without it. A few of these boat houses probably cost twice that.