Pennsylvania Act 1981-118 — REAL ESTATE - AFFIDAVITS AFFECTING TITLES

Act text

REAL ESTATE - AFFIDAVITS AFFECTING TITLES
                  Act of Nov. 5, 1981, P.L. 328, No. 118              Cl. 68
                                  AN ACT

     Providing for the recording of certain affidavits affecting the
        title to real estate and for their admissibility into
        evidence.

        The General Assembly of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania
     hereby enacts as follows:

        Section 1.  An affidavit, stating facts relating to the
     matters hereinafter named, which may affect the title to real
     estate in this Commonwealth, made by any person having personal
     knowledge of the facts and competent to testify concerning them
     in open court, may be recorded (even though not acknowledged) in
     the Office of the Recorder of Deeds or Commissioner of Records
     in the county in which such real estate is situated; and when so
     recorded, such affidavit, or a certified copy thereof, shall be
     admissible evidence of the facts therein stated, insofar as such
     facts affect title to real estate, provided a member of the bar
     of the highest court of this Commonwealth shall have signed a
     certification, appended thereto, that he or she relied upon such
     affidavit in passing on the title to such real estate.
        Section 2.  The affidavit herein provided for may relate to
     the following matters: age, sex, birth, death, capacity,
     relationship, family history, heirship, names, identity of
     parties, marital status, possession or adverse possession,
     residence, service in the armed forces, conflicts or ambiguities
     in descriptions of land in recorded instruments, and the
     happening of any condition or event which may terminate an
     estate or interest.
        Section 3.  Every affidavit herein provided for shall include
     the name, age and residence of the affiant, a description of
     such real estate, title to which may be affected by facts stated
     in such affidavit, and facts showing that the affiant has
     personal knowledge of the facts stated, and shall state the name
     of the person appearing by the record to be the owner of such
     real estate at the time of the recording of the affidavit. The
     official taking the affidavit shall certify that the affiant is
     personally known to him or her, or satisfactorily proven, to be
     the person named as affiant. The recorder shall index the
     affidavit in the name of such record owner in both grantor and
     grantee indexes, and, if possible, shall note the recording
     thereof in the margin of the record of any instrument therein
     referred to.
        Section 4.  This act shall take effect in 60 days.