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Kansas · TitleKansas adverse possession: fifteen years of open, exclusive and continuous possession

Kansas states its adverse possession rule in one sentence. No action may be maintained for the recovery of real property against a person who has been in open, exclusive and continuous possession of it for fifteen years, either under a claim knowingly adverse or under a belief of ownership (K.S.A. 60-503). The second alternative matters for boundary disputes: a neighbor who believed in good faith that a strip was part of their lot – for example, because of an old fence – can rely on fifteen years of open, exclusive and continuous possession just as someone who knew the land was another's. The statute doesn't require payment of taxes or a written instrument.

What the statutes set

  1. Fifteen years (K.S.A. 60-503)

    Open, exclusive and continuous possession.

  2. Two grounds (K.S.A. 60-503)

    A claim knowingly adverse, or a belief of ownership.

  3. No tax rule (K.S.A. 60-503)

    The statute doesn't require tax payment or a written instrument.

What the TC does when a Kansas survey shows an encroachment

  • Send the survey to the title company and ask whether an encroachment is excepted or insured over.
  • If a neighbor claims land by long possession, track any boundary agreement or Kansas court filing as a task.
  • Keep the seller's and the claimant's documents – deeds, tax receipts, fence history – in the deal file.

Questions about Kansas adverse possession

How long is adverse possession in Kansas?

Fifteen years of open, exclusive and continuous possession (K.S.A. 60-503).

Does a Kansas neighbor need to know the land isn't theirs?

No. Possession may be under a claim knowingly adverse or under a belief of ownership (K.S.A. 60-503).

Related guides

Track survey review and any boundary agreement as tasks on the deal in ClosingCode.

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Source: K.S.A. 60-503 (ksrevisor.gov), read October 30, 2026.

General information, not legal advice. ClosingCode is software; it is not a law firm or brokerage. This guide is not a substitute for the advice or services of an attorney.