Abandoned House? OK To Metal Detect?

[coinman123]

I am good friends with the fire chief of the town, would he be any help in getting information, he has lived there for a few decades and been fire chief for around ten years.

 

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[Primus Palus]

I am good friends with the fire chief of the town, would he be any help in getting information, he has lived there for a few decades and been fire chief for around ten years.

Not unless they've responded there and have contact info. Even Police departments don't house much contact information.

 

[Xraywolf]

Trouble is, prevailing (and yes, technically correct) view is that NO MATTER how remote, abandoned, vacant, etc.... "Someone still owns it ".

Never mind that they might live in another state. Never mind that it's not fenced or posted. Never mind that the place is routinely traversed as an innocuous walk trail. Bottom line is: you must seek out the owner. Oh well. It is a family friendly forum after all.

I look out for houses that are burned down or in the process of demolition. I have a couple posts in the last couple of weeks detailing such hunts.
Yeah I guess someone owns the lot - It is being churned up and will be turned into who knows what, another house, a vacant field or a parking lot. A place where demolition cranes are roaming around and dirt being placed and removed by the ton I don't think they will care about holes in their lawns or valuable finds being stolen from them.
Also, I happen to be into heavy construction as a living, so I feel right at home on any demolition site [I of course don't detect while they are actively working]. I usually hit it before they come in or wait until they are done, not always.
Sometimes those piles of dirt are too much to resist, but I do resist if the entire site is barricaded and/or there are obvious hazards. Very often they are not, I consider them fair game, same as a street/sidewalk tearout.

I'm not advocating anyone to do as I do or say "Yeah, go for it !". Every situation is unique and must be judged by its merits.
A place that has been abandoned, in dilapidated condition ect is a potential site, really impossible to judge knowing nothing about it.

 

[wainzoid]

Permission from a neighbor, cop, or fireman to trespass on my property isn't going to work out well

 

[foiler]

Bottom line is you are obligated to take the action to protect your property. Posting and maintaining of boundary signs and restricted use is the first thing asked in court. In instant case where an apparent abandoned property lies with no postings, fencing or signage then how is the public to know where private property begins and ends. Put aside metal detecting. Technically, walking on the property without permission is an act of trespass. I believe the law is fairly standard in every state. Owner is obligated to identify their property else they risk trespass.

 

[Truth]

In that situation I would


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[Tom_in_CA]

....... then how is the public to know where private property begins and ends. ......

From what I gather , it is your duty to measure it out. Perhaps you could hire a surveyor. Because... heaven forbid you were on the wrong side of some invisible line.

 

[jeff of pa]

I am good friends with the fire chief of the town, would he be any help in getting information, he has lived there for a few decades and been fire chief for around ten years.

I would say, as long as your not talking a large city,
yes it is likely he or one of his colleagues may have info

 

[villagenut]

.......and you go through all the legal steps to make everyone happy, only to find that upon gaining the permission, you find the house lot has been pounded over the years by folks who never bothered asking for permission. Been there ,done that.

 

[against the wind]

This is a great post.
I read some opinions on the law, even though it isn't being posted by a lawyer or a judge. Some comments were educational, some were based on ignorance, and some were in defiance of established written laws. Thank you all for the mood swings.
I will soon take ownership of a farmhouse, (built in 1900), and almost 9 acres of land. The Timber rights, as well as the Oil, Gas, & Mineral rights will convey to me when the deed becomes mine. The land has been recently surveyed but additional posts may be needed. I don't believe I want to post the land or fence it off. Rural Pennsylvania is a land where everyone has a hunter in their household. I don't have any problems with people who own guns. Once I become a Pennsylvania state resident, I will be purchasing a few. I don't have a problem with people who like to hunt. I intend to get a hunting license, if for no other reason than to learn what the rules are.
I have no desire to get on the wrong side of my new neighbors. I don't want to Post my land or put up No Trespassing signs or fences.
When I walked up onto some of the wooded areas of the property, I noticed hunting cameras and tree stands. They belong to the neighbors. I don't think I am too crazy about that arrangement. There is a thing called "Insurance "
Having lived in NYC all my life, I have accepted that some people will not hesitate to sue. It is a lawyer's meal ticket. It has been suggested to me by people who come from families of hunters, that I consult with a lawyer to protect myself.
I live and breathe metal detecting. If you have not been invited to detect my land and if you are metal detecting on my land without permission, you are trespassing. I'm kind of hoping that this small farm is virgin metal detecting land. I guess I want to secretly keep it to myself. I'm already looking forward to swinging the coil over my soil.
On a personal level,, I would be very disturbed if someone was to assume that it is okay to go ahead and metal detect on my property without first getting my permission. I would rank it right up there with "Felonious Stupidity" Maybe a citation for Tresspassing, destruction of private property, and / or theft would cause the trespasser enough aggravation, to make them pause to reflect on and change their rebellious ways.

 

[Critik]

My logic is... I there is no signs and it is abandoned I go right on and start swinging. The worse that could happen is someone saying please do no detect there..

 

[jeff of pa]

My logic is... I there is no signs and it is abandoned I go right on and start swinging. The worse that could happen is someone saying please do no detect there..

I would say that depends on state.

as far as I've been able to Glean.
Pennsylvania is a state where it's the Trespassers Job to Know ahead of Time.

some say trespassing signs must be Posted & Signed. because of
animal Rights Nuts & Greedy Hunters posting Fake signs.



but Hunters Say signs are Not Necessary. Land Owners rule !
potential Trespassers must do the research.

of Course there is also Trespassing, Criminal Trespass & Defiant Trespass.

I Guess you may get away with a warning for simple Trespass. where their is no sign,
and someone feels comfortable warning you.
but is it worth it ?

The older I get, the less comfortable I am with the potential Drama.

 

[SD51]

Thought everyone might get a chuckle out of this...

"Michigan law classifies two types of trespassing as felonies. Trespassing on the property of a state correctional facility is a felony punishable by imprisonment up to four years, a fine up to $2,000 or both".

Does that mean that the "No Trespassing" signs posted around a correctional facility actually say, "TRESPASSERS WILL BE ADMITTED"!

 

[FreeBirdTim]

The abandoned property shows up on Zillow, not for sale, but it mentions taxes paid for the land in 2016 (less than $1000 dollars).

If someone is up to date on the taxes, then it's not abandoned and is off limits. Just because a person doesn't maintain a property doesn't mean they don't care about it. Could belong to an elderly person or someone who's strapped for cash and can't do anything to repair the house.

 

[FreeBirdTim]

I have no desire to get on the wrong side of my new neighbors. I don't want to Post my land or put up No Trespassing signs or fences.

That will change as soon as someone starts blasting away on your property a little too close to your home. Don't let hunters bully you. The last hunter who thought he could hunt on my property spent the weekend in jail. And no, I don't have "No Trespassing" signs on my land. You don't have to post your land to keep the fools off of it. It's the hunter's (or the metal detectorists) responsibility to get permission to be on your land. If you don't have permission, you are trespassing and you can be arrested for it.

 

[coinman123]

That will change as soon as someone starts blasting away on your property a little too close to your home. Don't let hunters bully you. The last hunter who thought he could hunt on my property spent the weekend in jail. And no, I don't have "No Trespassing" signs on my land. You don't have to post your land to keep the fools off of it. It's the hunter's (or the metal detectorists) responsibility to get permission to be on your land. If you don't have permission, you are trespassing and you can be arrested for it.

The house I am moving to has a huge patch of woods right next to it, if you go farther some of it is not my land anymore, even though there are no neighbors on that side nearby. I am concerned about the possibility of hunters going on my land, or the land close by to it. I have many goats, chickens and horses, it would worry me if there were hunters so close to them. I can't put a sign on the land that doesn't belong to me though, which is still rather close to the barn. How would I go about making sure people don't hunt there, it is owned by my neighbor who is a little bit down the road, I think online it said he owned around 40 acres of land.

 

[ChampFerguson/TN]

Bottom line is you are obligated to take the action to protect your property. Posting and maintaining of boundary signs and restricted use is the first thing asked in court. In instant case where an apparent abandoned property lies with no postings, fencing or signage then how is the public to know where private property begins and ends. Put aside metal detecting. Technically, walking on the property without permission is an act of trespass. I believe the law is fairly standard in every state. Owner is obligated to identify their property else they risk trespass.

Lets remember that both legally and perceptually there is a large difference in walking across a piece of property vs digging it up + taking some of it home with you.

 

[saftgeek]

It is very easy to tell who actually owns property and who doesn't in reading these posts. I have found numerous people wandering around my property and in every single case they had a lame excuse and their motive was purely one of self-gain. This year I caught a county employee with his wife and kid hiding in the brush with a shirt full of mushrooms. He gave me a lame excuse as they crawled out from under a bush. I let them keep the mushrooms and explained to him that my nephew was working out of town but was actually planning to go looking later that day - BUT because they have no respect for property rights, now he won't. If I caught someone digging up my property without my permission, I'm not sure how that one would end. I have a native burial ground and a cemetery on my property... one of the first things my family did was clean up the graveyard, right all the stones and do an overall clean up. There are obvious signs where folks tried to excavate the mounds and even the graves in the cemetery. That one boggles my mind. Who would dig up graves, native and relatively recent? This is the type of foolishness that goes on when folks think they have a right to use private property for their own entertainment - one thing leads to another. Folks seem to have a way to rationalize almost anything if it benefits them. Moral of my rant - get permission or stay out. Somebody either cares if you are there or they don't. Take the time to do the right thing and answer that question... Do you care if I detect?

FYI - my signature line pertains to me buying detectors without my wife knowing, not trespassing.

Saftgeek-

 

[etex]

Ok all you arm chair lawyers, there is land on the Red River that Texas land owners having been paying property taxes on for 75 years and the river has moved south and now the Federal government is saying it is now federal land as Texas boundary starts at the south side of the river. Can they give me permission to hunt it?

 

[Honest Samuel]

The house I am moving to has a huge patch of woods right next to it, if you go farther some of it is not my land anymore, even though there are no neighbors on that side nearby. I am concerned about the possibility of hunters going on my land, or the land close by to it. I have many goats, chickens and horses, it would worry me if there were hunters so close to them. I can't put a sign on the land that doesn't belong to me though, which is still rather close to the barn. How would I go about making sure people don't hunt there, it is owned by my neighbor who is a little bit down the road, I think online it said he owned around 40 acres of land.

Ask your neighbor if you can put signs up. I am sure that he will agree to let you do it. I am wondering why you did not asked him by now.