Legal Question in Real Estate Law in California
I purchased a farm from an estate about 7 years ago. The executor of the estate went through the process of a lot line adjustment on the property and I purchased one of the four lots based on a cost per acre basis. A neighbor is in the process of selling their property, never part of the estate, which I thought was land locked and simply had an established acess road through my property. The real estate agent for the nieghbor dug a bit and discovered that the neighboring property actually owned .23 acres for access. Last week the title company mailed me legal descriptions of the property showing the error in the property description and a sheet for my signature indicating the my acceptance of the correct property description. The survey company dropped a paragraph when the new legal description for my lot was created. The county approved the lot split and the legal description. The new legal description is now defined in chains and links which supposedly is about a 20 foot by 500 foot area. I thought I knew where my property boundaries were. Not any more. On the neighbors property I cleared out bushes, trees, and buildt up a dirt road for everyone to use six years ago. The property they actually owned for access was so overgrown at the enterance that they couldn't have used it if they tried. The estate is settled and gone, the survey company no longer exists, and the individual that did the survey now works for the county part time. Basically, a small portion of the property I bought was owned by someone else and not for sale. Should the title company have caught this error? Should anyone involved resurvey my boundaries so I know where they are at and compenstae me for overpaying for the property and improving it? Is this simply just one of the joys of property ownership?
3 Answers from Attorneys
It depends on the policy you had. Specifically whether you had an ALTA policy or a CLTA.
The best advice is for you to have a real estate attorney in your locale to review all the papers and give you advice about what recourse you may have.
I can't add anything to the title-insurance advice, but I do have a couple of comments. First,it is hard to imagine that this project seven years ago was only a "lot line adjustment." Instead, it sounds like a minor subdivision, four parcels out of one. If you have not reviewed the entire county file, including the application, hearing minutes, etc., it might be worth while.
Second, is the 0.23 acre access area owned by the neighbor in fee, or is it only an easement? Sounds like the sort of thing for which easements are often used.
Finally, modern surveying techniques have reduced the cost of making accurate surveys, especially in rough country, and if an accurate and credible survey would solve problems, by all means get one, preferably with the neighbor's agreement, but do make a comparison between the surveyor's estimate and the value of the land before proceeding.
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