You might be new to the business and still learning about the basics of real estate, and you’ve come across the term “Involuntary alienation” and wonder what it means.
Continue reading below to learn what involuntary alienation is and what it means to the real estate profession.
Involuntary Alienation Definition
Involuntary alienation is a term used in the real estate business that describes a type of title transfer. But not any kind of transfer, this is an involuntary loss of property and can occur through foreclosure, adverse possession, condemnation, bankruptcy, or death.
We understand that this might sound like a lot to swallow, but it’s quite simple once you understand the examples and occurrences.
What Involuntary Alienation Is Not
If you still don’t entirely grasp the concept, it might be easier for you to master the term by understanding what it isn’t. Voluntary alienation, the opposing term to ours, occurs when an owner of a property wants to willingly sell or give away his or her ownership. It exactly opposes our term, or in other words, involuntary alienation occurs when a property is given away by law and without the owner’s consent. This is literally involuntary or without consent. Essentially, the owner is forced to forfeit their home.
How Does Involuntary Alienation Occur?
So, when does involuntary alienation occur in the real estate business? You might be surprised how often it happens, and here is what takes place:
Transfer by descent
Natural processes
Escheat
Foreclosure
Eminent domain
Forfeiture
Partitioning
Adverse possession
If any of these situations occur, you might be in store for involuntary alienation. We will now elaborate on all of these themes, so you can understand the topic as much as possible.
Transfer by Descent
The lightest of all is a transfer by descent, it occurs when a landowner dies without a will or heir. Then the State intervenes and determines who the rightful heir of the property is, to pass the legal title onto them.
Natural Processes
Avulsion and erosion occur when either the land goes to waste because of natural processes or disasters, like earthquakes or landslides.
Escheat
This process is close to transfer by descent, once the owner dies without a will or heir, and the closest heirs can’t be determined, escheat takes place. The State then reverts the property to itself.
Foreclosure
Who hasn’t heard about foreclosure? The most common occurrence of involuntary alienation is when a bank evicts the residents because of unpaid loan balances. In other words, foreclosure is a circumstance where one loses their property due to unpaid debts.
Eminent Domain
Eminent domain holds condemnation under its power, or the State can take ownership of a property from the original owner for public use. The State will pay the owner for the property but they are involuntarily alienated from it.
Forfeiture
Forfeiture occurs when the new owner of the property disobeys the deed or will by which they took the land into possession. This can occur when one uses the land for something the deed forbids or uses it outside the line of the deed.
Partitioning
This is a simple concept, where a property owned by two or more people is divided into sections.
Adverse Possession
Adverse possession takes place when an individual that is not the owner of the property gains legal title over it by continuous possession of the whole or part of the property. Of course, there are conditions to this situation, and these are:
Open and notorious - Easily seen and known to others
Continuous - Use is without interruption for a certain time, in most cases, it’s 7 years
Adverse and hostile - To the property
Example of Involuntary Alienation in Real Estate
Let’s say you wish to take hold of a vacant lot next to your property, but cannot reach the owner to start a negotiation. The last resort could be to take hold of it through adverse possession. One could do this by publicly and hostilely pointing out they are taking care of the property, without the consent of the owner and with proof when this period started. This should be constant for a certain period, after which one can file a court case and take ownership of the land. Here, the old owner would be involuntarily alienated from their property, and you could become the new owner by respecting the terms of adverse possession.
Conclusion
The point of involuntary alienation is losing ownership of a property involuntarily. We hope our brief article helped you understand what is involuntary alienation in real estate, so you can proceed with learning more about leads, marketing, and sales.