Legal Question in Real Estate Law in California

Theoretically possible, but it's a big gamble. First, you should check both the title records at the county recorder's office, then the property tax status at the county tax collector's office. If someone has been paying the taxes already, which may certainly be the case, your plan almost certainly isn't going to work. On the other hand, if the property taxes have gone unpaid for 4 or 5 years already, the property has either already been "sold for taxes" or is very close. So, you need to find this out. As to title, is title in the former owner's personal name, or in the name of a "living" trust? If a trust, who is the current trustee?

OK, in the slim chance that it turns out no one is paying the taxes and there has been no tax sale, you'd need to make a pretty good-sized investment right off the bat to bring the taxes current, including penalties and interest. Then, suppose an heir shows up and kicks you out. You've lost your investment in the taxes.

Your five years of adverse possession time starts when you go into possession, and five years from now is a long time to maintain property and pay back and current taxes in the hope that an heir doesn't show up and assert ownership against you.

I have no idea what kind of condition the property is in, but I assume after 4.5 years of neglect you'd have to spend a fair amount to make it liveable, in addition to paying the years of taxes. I'd investigate very carefully before moving in.

California recently changed the law governing adverse possession with the passage of Assembly Bill 1684, which amended Code of Civil Procedure section 325. AB 1684 amends California Code of Civil Procedure section 325 by requiring that the adverse possessor timely pay all taxes associated with ownership of the real property. This requirement makes it more difficult for a cheating adverse possessor to claim ownership by paying back taxes when they were not actually occupying the property.

What this means is you can no longer go in and claim adverse possession by simply curing a tax default in one lump sum. You must show that you continuously paid property taxes over a five year contiguous period.