California Statewide Rule
California Squatters & Adverse Possession (CCP §§ 318, 325)
Key Facts
- Possession period
- 5 years continuous (CCP § 318)
- Tax payment
- Required: all taxes for 5 years (CCP § 325)
- Possession quality
- Open, notorious, hostile, exclusive
- Trespasser vs. squatter
- Neither gains title without meeting § 325
- Removal
- Unlawful detainer, ejectment, or trespass action
Summary
California adverse possession requires five years of continuous, open, hostile possession AND payment of all property taxes during that period under Code of Civil Procedure § 325. A squatter or trespasser who has not paid taxes gains no ownership and can be removed by unlawful detainer, ejectment, or a police trespass action.
(a) For the purpose of constituting an adverse possession by a person claiming title, not founded upon a written instrument, judgment, or decree, land is deemed to have been possessed and occupied in the following cases only: (1) Where it has been protected by a substantial enclosure. (2) Where it has been usually cultivated or improved. (b) In no case shall adverse possession be considered established under the provision of any section of this code, unless it shall be shown that the land has been occupied and claimed for the period of five years continuously, and the party or persons, their predecessors and grantors, have timely paid all state, county, or municipal taxes that have been levied and assessed upon the land for the period of five years during which the land has been occupied and claimed. Payment of those taxes by the party or persons, their predecessors and grantors shall be established by certified records of the county tax collector. (Amended by Stats. 2010, Ch. 55, Sec. 1.
Full Breakdown
Under Code of Civil Procedure §§ 318 and 325, title by adverse possession requires possession for "the period of five years continuously" that is actual, open and notorious, hostile, and exclusive, with the land protected by substantial enclosure or usually cultivated or improved. Critically, § 325 requires the claimant "have timely paid all state, county, or municipal taxes that have been levied and assessed upon the land for the period of five years," proven by certified tax-collector records. A trespasser has no permission and no possessory claim; a squatter occupies without right but may claim tenancy-like status if allowed to remain. Without five years of possession plus tax payment, no ownership passes; removal is by unlawful detainer or ejectment.
Violations & Penalties
A squatter who cannot prove five years of continuous possession plus full tax payment acquires no title and can be ejected. Filing a fraudulent deed is a crime, and unlawful occupation may be prosecuted as trespass.
Frequently Asked Questions
How long before a squatter gains rights in California?
Do squatters have to pay property taxes to claim adverse possession in California?
How do you remove a squatter in California?
Sources
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