Hi,
I purchased a condo a few years ago, which came with a parking space. The guy who owns the condo across from me bought his unit through a HUD foreclosure. At the time of his sale, the Public Trustee gave him MY parking space and I just want to get it back. Apparently, there were some title issues with the double deeding of this parking space to both condos at the time the building was first turned into condominium units, but mine was deeded first, so it takes precedence over his. He has been unresponsive and continues to pay property taxes on the parking space for over 1 year now. Can I file a Quiet Title Action myself to correct the ownership of the space, or do I have to incur the tremendous attorneys’ fees to fix something that I didn't even cause? If I can do it myself, can anyone tell me how? Thx--Jag

Filing an action to quiet title is not an easy thing. I'm a real estate attorney and if I needed to file a quiet title action I would retain an attorney who is an expert in that area. I wouldn't try doing it myself. That's because if you make a mistake and do just one thing wrong you run the risk of losing.

You may be able to sue the party who made the original mistake and have them pay your legal fees for the quiet title action.

Speak to an attorney in your area who has handled quiet title actions before. If you don't know one you can contact a title insurance agency and they can probably recommend one. You should be able to get a free consultation and see what it will cost you and if you have a chance of getting reimbursed for it.

I will add to this, if you have to ask the question then you need an attorney,

An Action to Quiet title can be done without an attorney, but it carries the element of risk, as would be expected in appearing before the court without proper representation.

If it were me in your shoes, I would file a formal agreement with your county recorder granting temporary permission to use the parking area according to your deed.

After the expiration on your "permission agreement", I would then ask the tax office to update their records to reflect your deed.

The government is all about the paperwork. So fight paperwork with paperwork.

You have the earliest deed [compare your records with the County's Appraisal district], and a recorded agreement granting permission of use [exerting ownership over the property disputed]. Thus, the tax office will have every reason to update the property tax records.


If you do this before the opposing party takes any action, then you should be able to achieve a correction to the tax record, without the hassel/expense of needing an attorney.

Then again, it could be as simple as verifying your deed with the county recorder, getting a certified copy, and taking it to the tax office. Best Wishes!

Thanks for: 1) Clearly spelled out steps 2) Explanation: "The government is all about paperwork. Fight paper work with paperwork. I have a proprty in which I have to pay the mortgage, taxes, insurance, utilities but can't sell/ clouded title