What are squatters’ rights in Pennsylvania?

In Pennsylvania, an action for the possession of real property must be commenced within 21 years. A shorter 10-year period applies to real estate of no more than one-half acre that the statute describes as improved by a single-family dwelling the possessor has occupied for the full 10 years and identified as a separate lot in a recorded conveyance, subdivision plan or official municipal map or plan. To take title under that shorter period the possessor must bring a quiet title action and give notice to the record owners, who then have one year to respond with an action in ejectment. Until that period has run, a person occupying property without permission has no claim to its title. This is 42 Pa.C.S. § 5530; 42 Pa.C.S. § 5527.1.

WhatPennsylvania
Adverse possession period21 years

Source

42 Pa.C.S. § 5530; 42 Pa.C.S. § 5527.1

Read the statute in the Pennsylvania Statutes (Pennsylvania General Assembly): palegis.us.

Checked against the statute on November 13, 2026.

This is a summary of the published procedure, not legal advice. Courts, local rules and the facts of a tenancy change what applies, and a defect in a notice or a filing can end a case. Have a lawyer review anything before it is served or filed.

How Seayora uses this rule

Seayora does not file, serve or appear in an eviction, and is not anybody’s lawyer. When a tenant has stopped paying, it lays out these steps for the property’s own state and city with the statute beside each one, holds back any step that would come too early, keeps an append-only record of the case — and shows the resident what would end it, legal-aid links included.

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