A HOMEOWNER almost ended up losing her home of 20 years even though she had not put it on the market.
Maria Kendall was stunned when she discovered an advert for her mom's Natalia Esteban’s property on Zillow.
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Esteban and her then-husband bought the home in Marshalltown, Iowa – around 50 miles from Des Moines – in 2001.
She moved to California in 2018 but still owned the house and returned to Iowa in the summer months, per the Nebraska Examiner.
Her daughter Kendall only saw the advert when she looked to see what properties were on the market.
The home had been listed even though Esteban hadn’t decided to sell it.
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It ended up being listed because of a quiet title law.
“We would never have found out the house was sold,” Kendall told the Nebraska Examiner.
Larry Colton, her boyfriend, admitted he feared what the consequences could’ve been had the advert not been spotted.
Kendall said losing the house would’ve had a devastating impact on her mom.
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“My mother is retired, but because she did not work so long in the United States, her retirement is very small," she said.
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“So losing the only thing that can help her to make [a] better quality of life.… It was very devastating for her."
Legal experts say that quiet title motions are filed to resolve any property disputes.
Quiet title petitions are filed by people who claim to be interested in a particular home.
It emerged Catherine Gooding filed a quiet title petition because she claimed the home Esteban was living in was abandoned.
Gooding claimed she had proof that she owned the property.
Esteban's family vehemently disputed Gooding's claims.
What is quiet title action?
Quiet title petitions are filed in a bid to resolve property disputes.
The petitions are submitted by a person who claims to have an interest in a property.
Experts at Hocker Law have outlined scenarios where such motions can be filed.
This includes:
- Boundary disputes with neighbors
- Unoccupied abandoned homes
- Inheritance disputes
- Tax-related issues
- Adverse possession claims
Lawyers have explained that the entire process has around four steps.
The person who claims to be interested must research the ownership history of the property.
Then, the petition has to be written, which is traditionally done by a lawyer.
Attorneys at Jones Property Law have said this is not always the case as parties can always self-represent themselves.
The third step is filing the motion, which is usually done at a general civil court.
Quiet title lawsuits are not generally heard inside a federal courthouse.
The fourth step is where the case is heard in court.
If the defendant does not appear at the hearing, they could lose the judgment by default.
An uncontested quiet action lawsuit generally costs around $1,500 to $5,000.
But lawsuits that are more contentious will have higher costs.
She told the court that she couldn’t find Esteban to tell her about the petition.
Her claims appeared in local media three times in October 2020.
Esteban didn’t appear in court and lost the case, but Kendall and Gooding eventually reached a settlement.
The case was dismissed by a judge.
This meant that Esteban didn’t lose her home of more than two decades via the quiet title motion.
But Esteban eventually sold the property under her own accord.
Legal experts have warned how owners of homes may not even be warned that they could be at risk of losing their property.
Lawyers have claimed that most people would struggle to define a quiet title action.
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“I’d say the average person knows absolutely nothing about quieting titles or even what the title is,” Mike White, a real estate attorney, told Iowa Public Radio.
Critics have claimed quiet title actions have been used to target migrants unfairly.
