Legal Question in Real Estate Law in New Jersey

Quiet Title and Land aquisition

Bought a lot in NJ. Rear of lot has a 40 foot wide x 2500 feet long strip of land following parallel to a railroad (railroad does not own strip of land). Looks like this strip was an old right of way for a continuation of a street that was never built. Its not shown as a paper street on tax maps. The town zoning office says that no one owns the land or has owned it for years but one individual is paying a small ammount of taxes on the strip. I went to town tax collector and the person paying taxes on the strip is listed ''c/o'' and there is no official owner listed. I would like to get this land to add to my parcel since its right behind mine abutting it.

I noticed the words ''quiet title'' used on this site for similar situations. Will this fall into same category or something else? If is ''quiet title suit'' how can I file for quiet title and how long will the process take and $$$ (approx)? I want to try to do myself if possible what steps do i need to take to get this property legally ??? Will I have to reimburse the person paying the taxes on the strip?

I want to get started as soon as possible on this... Details will be greatly appreciated! Thank you. Property is in southern part of nj.


Asked on 9/20/02, 11:15 pm

1 Answer from Attorneys
Robert Gleaner Robert A. Gleaner, P.C.

Re: Land aquisition on adjacent property

If someone is paying taxes on the strip of land, then they probably have some ownership interest. The first step would be to complete a title search on the property to see who has the current ownership interest. It would appear to me that someone would not be paying taxes on something they did not own. And, the municipality would have foreclosed on it if the taxes were not current. Once you find out who owns the land, you may be able to approach them and possibly buy it. However, the first step is to get a title search; the results will determine your direction thereafter. Keep in mind that this advice is based purely on the little bit ofinformation that you have given to me. There certainly may be other factors that would change my opinion. Further, no one can rely on advice from an attorney who has not been retained. Since it appears that you have not retained an attorney, you may want to contact an attorney (either me or someone else) to discuss your matter in more detail. Only then will you be able to rely on the advice. If you call me, [856-546-8010] mention Law Guru and your first one hour consultation will be free. Good luck! Rob Gleaner

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Answered on 9/21/02, 4:55 pm


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