THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF PENNSYLVANIA

HOUSE BILL

INTRODUCED BY WHEATLEY, BISHOP, DeLUCA, GEIST, JOHNSON, McGEEHAN, PAYTON, PRESTON, SIPTROTH, K. SMITH, J. TAYLOR, WAGNER, YOUNGBLOOD AND MURT, APRIL 22, 2009

AS RE-REPORTED FROM COMMITTEE ON APPROPRIATIONS, HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES, AS AMENDED, JUNE 7, 2010  

AN ACT

Amending Title 42 (Judiciary and Judicial Procedure) of the

Pennsylvania Consolidated Statutes, further providing for the

period of limitation relating to claims of adverse possession

under certain circumstances; and providing for uniform

notice, FOR mesne profits and for reimbursement.

The General Assembly of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania

hereby enacts as follows:

Section 1.  Title 42 of the Pennsylvania Consolidated

Statutes is amended by adding sections to read:

§ 5527.1.  Ten-year limitation.

(a)  Adverse possession.--Title to real property may be

acquired after no less than ten years of actual, continuous,

exclusive, visible, notorious, distinct and hostile possession

of the real property.

(b)  Contiguous lots.--

(1)  Where an additional lot abuts and is contiguous to

real property and has been regularly used as part of an

incident to the real property, a possessor who seeks to

acquire title to real property pursuant to this section may

also include the contiguous lot in the action to quiet title

under subsection (c).

(2)  In order to acquire title to the contiguous lot, the

possessor must show that:

(i)  The area of the contiguous lot as described by

the metes and bounds does not exceed a total area of one

acre when combined with the real property.

(ii)  The possessor has made actual, continuous,

exclusive, visible, notorious, distinct and hostile

possession of the contiguous lot for a period of not less

than ten years.

(c)  Quiet title action required.--

(1)  A possessor who seeks to acquire title to real

property pursuant to this section must, after meeting the

requirements of subsections (a) and (b), commence a quiet

title action and provide notice as required in this section.

(2)  Notice of the action shall include information

relating to the respondent's opportunity to cure as specified

in subsection (d) and shall be provided to the record owners,

their heirs, successors and assigns in the manner described

in this section, section 5527.2 (relating to uniform notice)

and the Pennsylvania Rules of Civil Procedure.

(d)  One-year notice.--

(1)  The record owners or their heirs, successors and

assigns shall have one year in which to respond by commencing

an action in ejectment against the possessor, which action

disputes the claim of adverse possession.

(2)  If an action in ejectment is so filed and served

within the one-year period and judgment is awarded to the

plaintiff in the ejectment action, the statute of limitations

is tolled.

(3)  If no action in ejectment is so filed and served

within the one-year period, then judgment may be entered by

the court granting title to the real property by adverse

possession pursuant to this section and the Pennsylvania

Rules of Civil Procedure.

(e)  Nonapplicability.--This section shall not apply to real

property that is part of a common interest ownership community

established under 68 Pa.C.S. Pt. II Subpts. B (relating to

condominiums), C (relating to cooperatives) and D (relating to

planned communities).

(f)  Definition.--As used in this section, "real property"

means real estate not exceeding one acre in area that is:

(1)  Improved by a single-family residential dwelling

that is and has been occupied by a person seeking title under

this section for the full ten years.

(2)  Identified as a separate lot in a recorded

conveyance, recorded subdivision plan or recorded official

map or plan of a municipality.

§ 5527.2  Uniform notice.

Notice shall be provided in a form approved by rule of the

Pennsylvania Supreme Court, which form shall include the metes

and bounds description, deed reference, street address, postal

zip code, uniform parcel identifier or tax parcel number and the

notice of the one-year period to cure as stated in section

5527.1(d) (relating to ten-year limitation).

§ 5527.3  Mesne profits.

Record owners, their heirs, successors and assigns shall have

the right to seek any mesne profits in an action in ejectment

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filed in response to the notice served under section 5527.1

(relating to ten-year limitation) or waive the right to such

recovery. Recovery shall be limited to the mesne profits

applicable to the six-year period ending with the commencement

of the action in ejectment pursuant to section 5527(b) (relating

to six year limitation).

§ 5527.4  Reimbursement.

The defendant in the ejectment action shall have the right to

recover such costs for maintenance, improvements, repairs,

renovations, taxes or other such expenses to benefit the real

property as the defendant can prove by a preponderance of the

evidence that were or should have been the responsibility of the

record owners, their heirs, successors and assigns.

Section 2.  Section 5530(a)(1) of Title 42 is amended to

read:

§ 5530.  Twenty-one year limitation.

(a)  General rule.--The following actions and proceedings

must be commenced within 21 years:

(1)  [An] Except as provided in section 5527.1 (relating

to ten-year limitation), an action for the possession of real

property.

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Section 3.  This act shall take effect in one year.