Lynn Fredregill, Realtor, RCR Properties, Inc. * Huffman, Tx.:

 

This is a heartwarming story where justice was done and all came out well.  However; that is frequently not the case.  If you own property in another area this is an example of what can happen and does happen more frequently that you would believe.  If the property has a structure on it you are even more at risk as there has been a tremendous increase in squatters taking over abandoned or vacant properties by adverse possession:

 

Tucked in a corner of Huffman is a little lake subdivision.  It's old .. developed in the 60's.  It's lower priced.  Just about right for our young, just starting out, returning Veterans and perfect for downsizing retirees.  It reminds me of where I was raised.  I like it.

 

Like many agents I like to do mail-outs.  One of the mail-outs resulted in listing a lot in this subdivision.  I immediately had a cash buyer.  Harris County Appraisal District showed the lot as having a little over 7,000 square feet.  It was obvious that this lot couldn't possibly be that large and so it was negotiated in advance that a survey would be done and the price of the lot adjusted based on accurate square footage.  Sure enough; the lot was about 3,000 square feet.  We closed and all was dandy.  The buyer wanted to know if she could purchase the adjoining lot or any of the other lots that were undeveloped.  I immediately sent out letters to the property owners on the street and received 3 replies from folks that wanted to sell.  Wonderful!

 

Lesson #1 in this story - check your tax bill.  Are you paying taxes on more square footage of land than is actually there?  Harris County may be billing based on the original platting of a subdivision and these plats are often inaccurate - especially those that were done 50 years ago.

 

So back out I go to view the other 3 lots with the buyer.  Just past the lot she purchased the road came to an end.  Beyond that was an easement for the road to continue and it had been cleared and some gravel down.  Oddly; there was a huge pile of rubble in the middle of the easement completely blocking access to the 3 lots.  A short walk further and we ran into ... a 7 foot fence.  The fence ran from a neighboring subdivision, across and completely blocking the road right-of-way, and right down the middle of one of the 3 lots I was listing and completely blocking access to the other 2 lots.

 

It was suggested to me that I run (not walk) away from this situation as it was going to be massively time consuming and since we are talking about lots valued at about $1500. each I was certainly going to lose money based on time and effort necessary.  All true .. but two lots were owned by little old ladies (like myself), widows who live in other parts of Texas and the third was also owned by a little old lady who lived in Florida.  The individual who put up the fence was effectively stealing their property by adverse possession.  The little old ladies were powerless to defend their ownership.  Dang.  Why me?

 

So I contacted the Fence King who advised me that those properties were now part of his back yard, he was not taking down his fence, and they were just little slivers of land that were of no real value.  Yea but .... they are not YOUR little slivers of land.  He also advised me that he had dumped all the rubble on the road to prevent access.   He acted as though he had just swatted a very small fly and his word was final and indisputable.  That was a mistake on his part.

 

So I contacted Harris County Sheriff's Department and filed a formal complaint that an individual was blocking a public right-of-way and then proceeded on to meetings with the City of Houston as the road he was blocking belonged to them.  That was followed by meetings with Harris County Engineering to make arrangements to push the road through to allow access to the lots that were blocked.  The powers that be met with the Fence King and advised him that the fence was coming down, he would remove the rubble at his expense and he could not block access to the lots.

 

It took about 6 months, but the end result was that the Fence King purchased the lots ... making all other parties quite happy.  The square footage reported by Harris County Appraisal District was inaccurate on 2 of the lots and; like the first lot sold, all prices were adjusted based on actual square footage.  He paid; and the little old ladies received, fair market value for each lot.  The Realtor lost money, learned a lot, did the right thing and sleeps well at night.

 

This occurred in a populated area, plainly visible to multiple neighbors who; of course, had no idea whether the Fence King had purchased the lots he had fenced in or not.  Had the owners of made some contact with either the homeowner's association or other property owner's in close proximity then they would not have been put at such a huge risk of losing their property and; make no doubt about it, they absolutely would have lost their property had the adverse possession of gone on long enough without dispute.

 

But they didn't.  They didn't basically because they really didn't know they needed to.  They shouldn't have needed to.  The idea of someone literally taking possession of our property without our knowledge in an attempt to steal that property from us is so outlandish and disgusting that it really doesn't cross our mind that someone would do that.  But they do.  And it is becoming so frequent that it is frightening.

 

If you own property situated at a sufficient distance that you cannot check on it on a regular basis then I strongly suggest you make contact with someone in the area of that property that is willing to let you know if they see any activity occurring on that property.

 

Repost this information and pass it along to everyone you know.  For more general real estate information; read my other blogs and bookmark my site as I try to post useful information on a regular basis.

 

Oh and; if you need a Realtor .... I'm hardworking and dedicated, qualified and professional.

 

Watch Your Dirt!

 

Lynn