Montana Statewide Rule
Montana Adverse Possession (Squatters' Rights)
Key Facts
- Occupancy period
- 5 continuous years
- Tax payment
- Required: all taxes for the full period
- Possession quality
- Open, notorious, exclusive, hostile
- Tenant time
- Never counts (permissive)
- Governing statute
- Mont. Code Ann. § 70-19-411
Summary
Montana adverse possession is hard to establish. Under Mont. Code Ann. § 70-19-411, a claimant must occupy and claim the land continuously for 5 years and must have paid all state, county, and municipal taxes legally levied on the land throughout that period. A trespasser who never pays the taxes gains nothing.
In no case shall adverse possessions be considered established under this code unless it shall be shown that the land has been occupied and claimed for a period of 5 years continuously and the party or persons, their predecessors, and grantors have during such period paid all the taxes, state, county, or municipal, which have been legally levied and assessed upon said land.
Full Breakdown
Mont. Code Ann. § 70-19-411 requires that 'the land has been occupied and claimed for a period of 5 years continuously' and that the claimant, predecessors, and grantors 'have during such period paid all the taxes, state, county, or municipal, which have been legally levied and assessed upon said land.' The tax-payment requirement is the key barrier: a mere trespasser who never pays the property taxes cannot perfect title no matter how long they remain. Possession must also be actual, open, notorious, exclusive, and hostile under Montana case law. Because a tenant occupies with permission, time on a lease never counts toward adverse possession against the landlord.
Violations & Penalties
No specific statutory penalty. A holdover tenant or trespasser is removed through the court eviction or ejectment process; without 5 continuous years of possession and full payment of all taxes, no ownership claim arises under § 70-19-411.
Frequently Asked Questions
How long must someone occupy land to claim adverse possession in Montana?
Do squatters have to pay property taxes in Montana?
Can a Montana tenant become an owner by staying past the lease?
Sources
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