Hi All,

I am in the process of purchasing an abandoned Right of Way adjacent to my property from the POA. They do not want to pave it, and I said I would entertain the purchase and construction of a personal drive on my own.

After consulting their attorney they asked to use a Quit Claim deed for the transaction, which I am hesitant to accept - would rather have at least a Deed without Warranty or better. I spoke with the County Planning & Development Department and their steer is this property would need to go through an abandonment process and re-platting to be adjoined to my parcel. I assume the POA doesn't want to deal with any of this as part of the transaction hence the Quit Claim.

My goal is to buy this land, construct a simple road, and sell it - but I worry about investing in this land if it will not be marketable with a Title Company for another purchaser.

What are you experiences, and thoughts on this scenario (beyond go talk to an attorney, I am already working on that)?  Thank you!

Not sure about the need to "be adjoined to my parcel", as in combining the parcel. Is your current property part of this same POA? If so, people sell property composed of two separate parcels, together, every day.

@Jeffrey H.    What is on the other side of the right of way?  The reason I ask is, anyone on the other side might be able to block any replat that would limit their use of the right of way.

Good point by @Jeffrey H. Generally common area for an HOA is on the plat. Therefore, an amendment to the plat would need to be recorded. That is why a Quit Claim won't work. Also, generally an HOA has language in their CCRs that prohibit transferring common area assets to anyone without a vote of the membership... common area is owned by everyone and this probably exceeds the powers of the board. That said, the board may have the power to create a long term lease - like 99 years - but I would caution them to be very transparent with their membership if they chose this route.

Hi All,

Thank you for the comments!  

@Wayne Brooks yes my parcel is part of the POA and this Right of Way is common area part of the Plat. @Michael Biggs yes there is another property owner on the other side of the RoW but they have access further up the road as it's a very large tract - nobody else is blocked since I am at the end of the road - literally. @Teri S. the board called a Special Meeting with notification to all members to hear and vote on this. The quorum from the attending members / proxies was that sale of the land was acceptable but to be negotiated with an attorney, and this process was also facilitated with their attorney so we should be above board. The CCR's for this specific POA allow the Board President to sign over real estate so long as the Special Meeting procedures occur.

I figure if I get a Quit Claim then the County may not allow me to re-Plat as I may not have sufficient Title to perform this task, or the abandonment process, which means the RoW land would not be marketable to future buyers - rendering any investment in it useless. As a result I asked for a Deed without Warranty and for cooperation from the POA to facilitate the abandonment and re-platting processes as pre-requisites to closing. I couldn't think of a better solution, and if you have any suggestions appreciate your input.

Thanks!

Update - ended up purchasing the roadway (0.25 acres) for $750.00 using a Deed without Warranty. Then surveyed and re-platted with the County. The Planning & Development Department did say it was one of the most odd re-plats they have done in a long time as POA's do not commonly sell their private roadways, and as a result we have to go through several iterations with the Commissioner's Court to make sure everything was ticked and tied.

Appreciate everyone's comments here!