Quiet title
A lawsuit asking a court to declare who owns a property and remove competing claims, or clouds, so the title can be sold or insured.
Definition
A quiet title action is a lawsuit asking a court to declare who owns a property and to remove competing claims, called clouds on title. The judgment settles the claims of the parties named in the case and clears the way for a sale or title insurance.
Investors run into quiet title after tax deed sales, when a title insurer wants the former owner's interest cut off by a court, and with missing heirs, old unreleased mortgages, boundary or deed errors and forged documents. California's Code of Civil Procedure section 760.020, for example, allows an action to establish title against adverse claims to real property. The plaintiff must name the people with adverse claims as defendants and serve them, which takes time when someone has died or moved. A quiet title case typically takes months and calls for an attorney. Rules vary by state; confirm with a local real estate attorney.
Source: leginfo.legislature.ca.gov
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