Sacramento Report
August 21, 2012
Governor Signs Series of Real Property Bills
In July the Governor signed a series of real estate bills. While the foreclosure bills gained the most media attention, several bills of interest to the real estate community were passed by the Legislature.
Senate Bill 1342 (Emmerson) increases the maximum fee that a county can place on certain recorded documents from $3.00 to $10.00. The new law also adds to the list of documents that may be subject to the fee. Deeds or other instruments requiring the payment of a documentary transfer tax are not subject to the fee. The revenues are deposited into the Real Estate Fraud Prosecution Trust Fund to be used to deter, investigate and prosecute real estate fraud.
Assembly Bill 1642 (Gordon) repeals the existing acknowledgment required for a notice of intent to preserve an interest in real property and instead requires the use of the general acknowledgment form. The new law also authorizes a county recorder to record a real property document that is required by a local ordinance to be recorded, such as a “Notice of Violation” for a code violation.
Assembly Bill 2680 (Comm. on Agriculture) deletes the sunset date of January 1, 2013, for Williamson Act lot line adjustments. Under existing law a lot line adjustment is allowed if it is agreed to by a city or county and a landowner in a process whereby the Williamson Act contact is ended and a new one simultaneously entered into facilitating the lot line adjustment.
Assembly Bill 1511 (Bradford) requires real estate sale contracts, beginning on July 1, 2013, to include a specified notice in not less than 8 point type, informing purchasers of residential property about the existence of a database where information regarding gas and hazardous liquid transmission pipelines can be obtained.
