How can I enforce payment when someone took over my property but hasn’t finished paying me for it? – North Carolina Short Answer In North Carolina, enforcing payment after someone has taken over property usually depends on what documents were signed at the time of the transfer. If the buyer signed a promissory note and…
How long do I have to disclaim a deed before it becomes final and hard to undo? – North Carolina Short Answer In North Carolina, a deed transfer generally becomes much harder to unwind once the deed is delivered and recorded, especially if someone else later relies on the public record. If the goal is…
What happens if someone forged legal documents related to a property transfer or ownership? – North Carolina Short Answer In North Carolina, forging a deed or other ownership document can trigger both criminal charges and a civil court case to fix the title. Criminally, forging a deed can be a felony, and using (“uttering”) a…
What can I do if the person who got my property is refusing to return my personal belongings? – North Carolina Short Answer In North Carolina, when someone keeps personal belongings that belong to someone else, the usual legal options are (1) a court case to recover the items themselves (often called “claim and delivery,”…
Do we need to settle and pay any outstanding property taxes before the deeds can be recorded? – North Carolina Short Answer In North Carolina, unpaid property taxes do not always block deed recording, but they can in many counties. A county may require a tax certification showing no delinquent taxes are a lien on…
What happens if the other co-owners refuse to sign paperwork needed to move forward with a sale? – North Carolina Short Answer In North Carolina, if co-owners cannot agree to sign the paperwork needed to sell jointly owned real estate, the usual legal remedy is a partition case in Superior Court. A partition case can…
If family members are living on the property, how does that affect ownership rights and what steps we can take next? – North Carolina Short Answer In North Carolina, family members living on inherited or jointly owned property usually do not gain extra ownership rights just because they live there. If the people living there…
If someone paid taxes on a different inherited property by mistake, can that payment be credited toward these parcels? – North Carolina Short Answer Usually not automatically. In North Carolina, property taxes are tracked by the county tax office to a specific tax account or parcel, so a payment made on the wrong inherited property…
What kind of proof do I need to show there was an agreement to pay for the property? – North Carolina Short Answer In North Carolina, the strongest proof is a written, signed agreement that shows the purchase price and payment terms for the property transfer. If the deal involved selling or conveying an interest…
Do all heirs have to sign the deed, and can we record it by mail if the heirs live out of state? – North Carolina Short Answer In North Carolina, if multiple heirs inherited the land together, they usually own it as co-owners, and a deed that transfers the entire property generally needs signatures from…
