US property law
How long is squatters' rights in Alabama?
Ten years, if the possessor holds color of title and has paid the property taxes; twenty years for bare possession with neither. Alabama Code section 6-5-200 runs the same trade-off Texas and Washington do, on different numbers.
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- Statutory period
- 10 or 20 years
- What's different here
- 10 years with title and taxes, 20 years bare
- Statute
- Ala. Code § 6-5-200
Alabama shortens its ordinary adverse possession period from twenty years down to ten for a possessor who holds color of title, a document that looks like a valid deed but has a defect in it, and who has also paid the property taxes throughout the period. Without both of those, the period is twenty years of bare possession.
This is the same shape of trade-off Texas and Washington offer, paperwork and tax payment in exchange for a shorter clock, though the specific numbers differ in each state: Texas offers 3 or 5 years for color of title, Washington offers 7, and Alabama offers 10. An ordinary squatter with no deed and no tax payments is on the twenty-year track in Alabama, the longest of the state's two options.
Both tracks still require the same underlying elements: possession that is hostile, actual, open, notorious, exclusive and unbroken for the whole period, whichever one applies.
Where Alabama sits against the rest of United States, in years
Of 15 places in United States on these pages, 3 have a shorter clock and 6 a longer one or none at all.
This is called self-help eviction, and it is illegal in every state once someone has established residency. It exposes the owner to liability, on top of not working.
How it unfolds
From the day someone moves in to the day a claim is possible
The same three stages in most places. The exact rule, and whether the last stage exists at all, is on each place's own page.
- Day oneMoving inCaught in the act, it is usually a matter for the police: a trespass, not a tenancy.
- Weeks to yearsSettled inOnce someone lives there, removing them usually takes a court order, the same route as for a tenant.
- After 10 or 20 yearsA claim becomes possibleOnly if every test held, without a break, for the whole period. Where the law allows no such claim, this stage never comes.
Not yours to do, once they have moved inChanging the locks, cutting the water or power, or removing belongings yourself. It is illegal in every US state and most places on these pages forbid it too. Each page says how removal works there.
Before it is ever a court case
The record a court asks for, kept as you go
Wherever your property stands, removing an occupant usually comes down to showing who had the right to be there, and since when. Dardaris files every lease, message and document for a building by date, so that record already exists on the day you need it.
- Every lease, with who signed it and when
- Every message with a tenant, on the thread it was sent in
- Every document, filed against the building it concerns
Frequently asked questions
What are the squatting laws in Alabama?
Alabama's squatter law comes down to Ala. Code § 6-5-200: 10 or 20 years of continuous, hostile, open and exclusive possession before a squatter can claim ownership. What sets Alabama apart: 10 years with title and taxes, 20 years bare. Squatting itself is trespassing, and a squatter who has settled in is still removed through the courts, never by changing the locks or cutting the utilities.
How long is squatters' rights in Alabama?
Ten years with color of title and tax payment throughout, or twenty years of bare possession without either. Ala. Code § 6-5-200.
What period applies to an ordinary squatter with no deed in Alabama?
Twenty years, the bare-possession track, since they hold no color of title and are not the one paying the property taxes.
How is Alabama's rule different from Texas or Washington?
All three shorten the period for a possessor with color of title and tax payment, but the numbers differ: Alabama offers 10 years, Texas offers 3 or 5 depending on use, and Washington offers 7.
Can an Alabama landlord remove a squatter without a court order?
No. Self-help eviction is illegal in Alabama once someone has established residency, whichever adverse possession period might eventually apply. Removal requires the formal eviction process.
Elsewhere in United States
The same question, on a different clock. Every place sets its own period and its own shortcuts.
This is general information, not legal advice.Laws change, and a county or a city can add its own wrinkle on top of the state rule, the way New York City does. Confirm the current rule for your address before acting on it, and talk to a local attorney before relying on any of it in a real dispute.
Know who is actually in your property, before it becomes a court case.
Hand over one building and see every lease checked against what is actually happening on the ground.
14 days before the first charge · Nothing is switched on until you say so