HB 1016: Magistrate courts; expand existing remedies regarding unauthorized possession of real property

Georgia law already lets a property owner who believes someone is illegally occupying their land sign an affidavit asking a sheriff or other certified officer to remove that person, giving the occupant three days to fight back with a counteraffidavit. This bill expands that system for condominiums and property owners' developments (like some subdivisions). It creates a new category called an 'interested third party,' meaning any other unit or lot owner in the same condo or development as the affected property, and lets that neighbor file the removal affidavit if the actual affected owner does not act. Before a neighbor can start this process, they must send the affected owner at least three days' written notice by certified mail or overnight delivery, and the condo or homeowners' association must help deliver that notice. If the affected owner objects, the neighbor cannot proceed. The bill also gives magistrate courts jurisdiction over these new proceedings, makes small wording updates elsewhere in the law, and takes effect July 1, 2026, applying to offenses on or after that date.

• Creates a new Code section (44-11-30.1) letting a neighboring unit or lot owner in a condo or property owners' development file an affidavit to remove a suspected squatter from a nearby property.
• Requires that third party to give the actual affected owner at least three days' written notice by certified mail or overnight delivery before starting the removal process.
• Requires the condominium or homeowners' association to cooperate in delivering that notice to the affected owner.
• Blocks the third party from proceeding if the affected owner denies permission to start the removal process.
• Gives magistrate courts explicit jurisdiction over these new third-party removal proceedings, alongside existing intruder-removal cases.
• Keeps the requirement that anyone facing removal gets three days to submit a counteraffidavit before being removed or arrested, and updates related sections for consistency.

Condominium and property owners' association members, especially owners whose units or lots are occupied without permission; neighboring owners within the same development who could now request removal on their behalf; homeowners' and condo associations, which must help deliver notices; sheriffs, deputies, constables, and certified peace officers who carry out removals; and magistrate courts, which handle the resulting cases.

Currently only the actual property owner can start the sheriff-assisted removal process against a suspected squatter. This bill would let a neighbor in the same condo or subdivision start that process too, potentially speeding up removals in cases where the true owner is unreachable, while still requiring notice to that owner and giving occupants three days to contest removal in court.

• Section 1 adds the new Code Section 44-11-30.1 to the list of proceedings magistrate courts have jurisdiction over.
• Section 2 rewrites Code Section 44-11-30 to use the term 'real property' instead of 'land or tenement' and clarifies the three-day exhibition and removal timeline.
• Section 3 creates Code Section 44-11-30.1, defining 'affected owner,' 'affected property,' 'interested third party,' and related condo and property owners' development terms, and setting the notice and objection procedure for third-party removal requests.
• Section 3 also states legislative findings that unauthorized possession threatens the safety and property rights of unit and lot owners and that current remedies are inadequate.
• Section 4 updates Code Section 44-11-31 so officers administering counteraffidavit oaths cover both the original and new removal procedures.
• Section 5 updates Code Section 44-11-32 on trial procedure after a counteraffidavit is filed, relabeling subsections and adding the new Code section reference; it also lets courts award fair market rent and other monetary relief and confirms appeals go directly to Georgia's appellate courts, not the superior court.
• Section 6 sets the effective date as July 1, 2026, applying to offenses occurring on or after that date.

1. 2026-03-06House Committee Favorably Reported By Substitute (Cámara de Representantes)
2. 2026-01-29House Second Readers (Cámara de Representantes)
3. 2026-01-28House First Readers (Cámara de Representantes)
4. 2026-01-27House Hopper (Cámara de Representantes)

• Dar'shun Kendrick (D, HD-095)Patrocinador principal
• Robert Flournoy (D, HD-074)

• squatting laws
• property rights
• homeowners associations
• magistrate courts
• condominium law