This blog post touches on a few different scenarios of the same topic but the
how do you transfer real estate from the name of a deceased person?
If a real property is held in the name of one person, and that person dies, how do you transfer the deed to the name of a new person?
quit claim real estate in arizona
To quitclaim real estate means to transfer your interest or ownership in the property to a third-party without making any guarantees or warranties about the property’s title.
In other words, a quitclaim deed transfers whatever interest or title the grantor (the person transferring the property) has in the property to the grantee (the person receiving the property), but does not make any promises or guarantees about the title’s validity or any outstanding liens or encumbrances on the property.
This type of deed is often used in situations where the grantor is not making any monetary or other consideration for the transfer, such as transferring property between family members, or to clear up any potential disputes over ownership. It’s important to note that a quitclaim deed does not provide any protection to the grantee, and they will assume any risks or legal issues related to the property’s ownership after the transfer.
how to transfer the title if it had been held in a trust and the trustee has passed away?
If a real property is held in a trust and the trustee dies. How do you change the name on the deed?
Affidavit of Death of Joint Tenant– In a Joint Tenant in a Right of Survivorship.
Record the Affidavit . Automatically becomes the sole owner of the property.
Many people who are the survivors of the real property that is held as Community Property or as Joint Tenants with Rights of Survivorship want the deed to be changed to reflect that they now own the real property as a single person.
If you have questions about changing the name on an Arizona deed then contact the Arizona real estate attorneys at the Dunaway Law Group at 480-389-6529 or message us HERE.
how to rename a deed if a person changed their name
It is quite common for woman to take the last name of their husband when their are married, how can you change the name of the property into the spouse’s new name?
Affidavit of Name Change
*** IT IS IMPORTANT TO TAKE NOTE THAT THIS BLOG POST APPLIES ONLY TO REAL PROPERTIES IN ARIZONA. *** *** AS A COMMUNITY PROPERTY STATE ARIZONA HAS VERY UNIQUE LAWS WHEN IT COMES TO REAL PROPERTY OWNERSHIP ***
There is a distinct pattern or cycle to the volume of residential evictions that occur throughout the year in Arizona. For instance, each year there is a spike of evictions in January, why is this?
landlords DELAY EVICTIONS DURING HOLIDAYS
Contrary to popular believe most landlords are actually nice people who have feelings too. Many landlords will not evict tenants during the holiday season. Beginning with Thanksgiving and going through New Year’s Day, landlords will often say, “I don’t want to evict someone during the holiday season and so I’ll just wait until the new year to begin the eviction process.”
justice COURTS WILL DELAY THE EVICTIONS
Experienced Arizona landlord – tenant attorneys and property managers know that the justice court judges and constables will do whatever they can to not evict an Arizona resident during the holiday season. After an eviction judgment has been granted by the court the tenants have just five (5) calendar days to vacate! If the Arizona tenant does not vacate within those five (5) calendar days, then we can go back into court and file for a Writ of Restitution. Writs must first be signed by the judge and then delivered to the constable for service.
Judges know that evictions are time sensitive and so they typically sign the order granting the Writ of Restitution almost immediately upon receiving it. However, during the holidays judges are often out of town which means there is no one to sign the writ. Additionally, even when the judges are in the office they are very slow to sign the writs. This is done in an attempt to slow down the actual eviction. Judges “misplace” them or are “too busy” working on other matters to sign the writs immediately. So it can take days before a judge will sign the writ.
Once the writ gets to the Arizona constables there is another big slow down in the eviction process. Similar to judges many constables leave town during the holiday season and so they are not physically able to execute the Writs of Restitution. Furthermore, I have had constables tell me to my face that they will not execute writs near Thanksgiving or Christmas.
For the reasons mentioned above there has been a build-up of delayed evictions that are then started in January.
arizona EVICTIONS AND TAX REFUNDS
I believe the decreased number of Arizona evictions in February, March, and April are directly correlated to tax refunds. Many people receive large tax refunds that they can use to pay their rent. I remember the first time I passed through those months as an eviction attorney. Sure enough each year when the tax refund season is over then the evictions increase.
One of the highest months for evictions each year is June. I think the spike during the beginning of summer has something to do with kids getting out of school and families wanting to move. When families are struggling economically and they want to move and they may stop paying rent at their current home and use that would-be rent money and use it as rent and security deposit, etc. at the new property.
pima county eviction statistics
The Pima County Consolidated Justice Court has a webpage with very detailed eviction statistics for its precinct. Click HERE.
If you are an Arizona landlord and need help resolving a dispute with a tenant, then please contact the Dunaway Law Group at 480-702-1608 or message us HERE.
* The information provided is informational only, does not constitute legal advice, and will not create an attorney-client or attorney-prospective client relationship. Additionally, the Dunaway Law Group, PLC limits its practice to the states of Arizona and New York.
A landlord must immediately stop an eviction if a tenant files bankruptcy. If you receive a notice from the bankruptcy court that a tenant you are trying to evict has filed bankruptcy then stop the process! Bankruptcy law is very complicated, with severe penalties for any creditors seeking to take action against someone who has filed for bankruptcy. If a tenant files for bankruptcy before you have obtained the eviction judgment then you must stop with the eviction lawsuit.
As soon as a person files bankruptcy an “automatic stay of protection” goes into effect. The Automatic stay of bankruptcy is an injunction that stops; garnishments, lawsuits, foreclosure, repossession, evictions, etc. It is the equivalent of a restraining order that prevents creditors from taking collection actions.
The Automatic Stay is not Absolute
The automatic stay is not an absolute and landlords are given the right to file a Motion with the bankruptcy court requesting the bankruptcy to “lift” the automatic stay. Once the automatic stay has been “lifted”, the landlord may proceed with the eviction. It takes approximately 30 days for the bankruptcy court to grant permission to proceed with the eviction. If the tenant files an “objection” to the lift-stay motion then a hearing will be set in the bankruptcy court. If a hearing is required, then it may be 2 to 3 months before a hearing has been set and the request to lift the stay can be argued in front of a bankruptcy judge.
If you are an Arizona landlord whose tenant has filed for bankruptcy then contact the Dunaway Law Group at 480-702-1608 or message us HERE.
The Dunaway Law Group provides this information as a service to clients and other friends for educational purposes only. It should not be construed or relied on as legal advice or to create a lawyer-client relationship. Readers should not act upon this information without seeking advice from professional advisers. The Firm limits its practice to the states of Arizona and New York.
In Arizona, there are no real protections that prevent someone from recording fraudulent documents with a county recorder. A person can literally quit claim the Arizona State Capital building to themselves and the county will record it. The recorder’s office does not have the ability or duty to confirm that the documents are legitimate. Obviously this can cause real problems!
There are multiple occasions where I’ve had a client come into my office panicked because some type of fraudulent document had been recorded involving one of their properties. I’ve seen cases where easements were added without the owner’s knowledge or permission. Plus, I’ve seen parcels split or property completely transferred to another person!!!
WHAT CAN YOU DO IF
SOMEONE RECORDS A FRAUDULENT DOCUMENT?
Arizona law will not prevent someone from wrongfully recording documents with the county, however, state law provides for severe punishment against those who do.
Under A.R.S. § 33-420(C), provides penalties against anyone who wrongly records a document. If found guilty, the court can award a minimum penalty of $5,000, or treble damages for the actual financial harm, and attorney’s fees.
A.R.S. § 33-420(A) states:
A. A person purporting to claim an interest in, or a lien or encumbrance against, real property, who causes a document asserting such claim to be recorded in the office of the county recorder, knowing or having reason to know that the document is forged, groundless, contains a material misstatement or false claim or is otherwise invalid is liable to the owner or beneficial title holder of the real property for the sum of not less than five thousand dollars, or for treble the actual damages caused by the recording, whichever is greater, and reasonable attorney fees and costs of the action.
B. The owner or beneficial title holder of the real property may bring an action pursuant to this section in the superior court in the county in which the real property is located for such relief as is required to immediately clear title to the real property as provided for in the rules of procedure for special actions. This special action may be brought based on the ground that the lien is forged, groundless, contains a material misstatement or false claim or is otherwise invalid. The owner or beneficial title holder may bring a separate special action to clear title to the real property or join such action with an action for damages as described in this section. In either case, the owner or beneficial title holder may recover reasonable attorney fees and costs of the action if he prevails.
C. A person who is named in a document which purports to create an interest in, or a lien or encumbrance against, real property and who knows that the document is forged, groundless, contains a material misstatement or false claim or is otherwise invalid shall be liable to the owner or title holder for the sum of not less than one thousand dollars, or for treble actual damages, whichever is greater, and reasonable attorney fees and costs as provided in this section, if he willfully refuses to release or correct such document of record within twenty days from the date of a written request from the owner or beneficial title holder of the real property.
D. A document purporting to create an interest in, or a lien or encumbrance against, real property not authorized by statute, judgment or other specific legal authority is presumed to be groundless and invalid.
E. A person purporting to claim an interest in, or a lien or encumbrance against, real property, who causes a document asserting such claim to be recorded in the office of the county recorder, knowing or having reason to know that the document is forged, groundless, contains a material misstatement or false claim or is otherwise invalid is guilty of a class 1 misdemeanor.
Occasionally, I am approached by clients who believe someone has recorded an invalid lien against their property and want to know what they can do to remove it.
A.R.S. 33-420: Discusses the issue of removing groundless or fraudulent liens that have been recorded with the county.
A.R.S. 33-420(A): Provides a property owner at least $5000, or treble the actual damages caused by the recording of forged, groundless, misstated, or contains false claims.
A.R.S. 33-420(C): Provides the property owner $1000, or treble actual damages, whichever is greater, and attorney fees and costs, if he willfully refuses to release or correct such document of record within 20-days from the date of a written request from the owner or beneficial title holder of the real property.
If you need help from an experienced shared well attorney, then contact the Dunaway Law Group at 480-702-1608 or message us HERE.
* The information provided is informational only, does not constitute legal advice, and will not create an attorney-client or attorney-prospective client relationship. Additionally, the Dunaway Law Group, PLC limits its practice to the states of Arizona and New York.
What are your rights to water that comes from a shared well that is not located on your property? For most people, the answer is in their written well share agreement.
The first question to be considered is—which state regulating body grants me the right to access and use groundwater? The Groundwater Management Act “GWMA” of 1980, established that groundwater, is common property of the citizens of Arizona and the management of it was under the Arizona Department of Water Resources, (ADWR). All groundwater withdraws in Arizona must come from a water well that was permitted by ADWR.
Owning the land or having an easement right does not give you the right to extract groundwater. The right to extract groundwater in Arizona only comes from having a permitted well.
Therefore, a well share agreement to share the water from a legal source should always refer to the well by its ADWR registration number.
On Whose Land Does is the Well Located?
The second question to be considered is: whose land is the well located on? If the well is located on land that is titled in the name of one of the members of the well share group, then that person owns the well. Drilling and constructing a water well creates a permanent change to real property and that it cannot be separated from the land, therefore, well becomes a part of the land. Groundwater is not real property. Percolating water beneath the earth in Arizona is called groundwater and in it is considered “public” property managed by the ADWR.
If the well is located on your neighbor’s lot, and they hold title to the land in their name, the well should be registered with the ADWR in their name. The ADWR recognizes that shared wells can, and should be, registered in the name of the person or party that is responsible for its management. The ADWR has created Form 55-73 , for the purpose of registering shared wells in the name of a managing or operating group. Registration of a well with the ADWR does not establish ownership of the well. A.R.S. § 45-593(c), requires that the owner of the land keep the ADWR up-to-date as to who owns the land and where the well is located. For this purpose, the ADWR created Form 55-71(a), request to change well information.
well is owned by those named on the deed
When a shared well site is situated on a parcel of land that is deeded and recorded in the appropriate Arizona county, the well is owned by the names listed on that deed. The wording of many well share agreements may grant several owners an undivided interest in into a small piece of land, and thus an undivided real property interest in the well. When this wording is used on the deed and in the shared well agreement, the assessors map should show a smart parcel of land with its own Assessor’s Parcel Number (APN). In this case, the well should be registered in the name of all parties listed on the deed.
If your well share agreement is worded in the same manner as the deed, you own an undivided piece of this land which means that you are also subject to a portion of the yearly property taxes or improvement assessments on this parcel.
Once water is pumped to the surface from a registered well, and placed in the storage tank, it becomes the personal property of the owners of the land. So, if you own a percentage of the land via the deed, then you also own a percentage of the water stored on it.
easement rights & ownership rights
Some well share agreements are structured such that the participants receive only an easement right to access the land where the well is located. There is a major difference between owning an undivided interest in a piece of real estate, partial ownership, versus having just a vested interest in someone else’s real property granted by an easement. An easement is a vested interest in someone else’s real property and not an undivided fraction of title to the land into the well.
An easement will typically state that it was granted for a specific purpose. If your well share agreement is an easement right of entry you should verify that you have a right to do more than merely access someone’s land. The wording of that easement may, by exclusion, not grant you are right to receive and share the water, located on that property. An easement is a vested interest only in someone else’s real property for a specific purpose and groundwater is not a part of real property.
arizona water well agreements- pre-1980
Many well water agreements in place today were written prior to 1980, when groundwater was more loosely considered to be a part of the real property. These older versions often refer strictly to the land and not to the water or the registered well. Well share agreements that refer strictly to a piece of real estate, and do not state the registration number of a well, may not be granting you a legally defensible right to the groundwater. A registered water well is the only legal right to the public groundwater resource and it is granted only to the permitted owner of the land. This is a very compelling reason why all well share agreements should refer to the water well being shared by the registration number.
Well share agreements should define a legal right to groundwater from a registered well. A well share agreement is a legal contract between two or more persons and it can be enforced by the courts. Not complying with the well share agreement can constitute a breach of contract.
If you are considering the purchase of a home with a shared well then read on post of what to expect when living in a home with a shared well. Also, review what a website that will help you schedule and record maintenance records and other important information.
If you would like to amend an existing water well agreement or would like to create a water well agreement then contact the Dunaway Law Group, PLC at 480-702-1608 or [email protected].
**The information provided is informational only, does not constitute legal advice, and will not create an attorney-client or attorney-prospective client relationship. Additionally, the Dunaway Law Group, PLC limits its practice to the states of Arizona and New York**.
