08/30/2024
🪧 HERE'S YOUR SIGN!
Residents may once again notice signs like these around Gadsden. We thought it may be helpful to explain what they're for and what they mean.
Each abandoned, state-owned property we acquire must first go through the quiet title process before the GLBA can obtain and transfer a clear title. This process is defined by Alabama real property law and requires a judicial ruling to "quiet" any prior interests in the property.
During that process, state law mandates that these signs be posted on properties. The intent of this part of the process is to help ensure all attempts have been made to sufficiently notify prior owners or parties with a legal interest in the property about the pending action.
The signs instruct “persons with information regarding the prior ownership of or interest in the property” to contact the Gadsden Land Bank Authority. In this case, having “an interest in the property” means a legal claim to it (i.e., someone who formerly owned the property, an heir, or a mortgagor).
If you know of someone who owns or is an heir of the owner of a property where a sign is posted, please alert them immediately and have them call the number on the sign. That is what the Quiet Title process is for.
If these properties, which have been tax-delinquent for more than three years, are not redeemed by individuals with a legal interest, the judge on each case may rule to "quiet" the title and transfer it to the GLBA for redevelopment.
In these cases, the GLBA has a transferee who has proposed to return that property to productive use via application and approval by the GLBA board of directors at a properly noticed public meeting. The board ensures that the application aligns with its priorities policies and procedures, and the transferee agrees to remain in compliance with those goals accordingly before the property is transferred.
To learn more about the GLBA, please visit gadsdenlandbank.org
