Bill > SB0896

This bill addresses complex land ownership rules in Tennessee by abolishing certain long-standing property interest restrictions. Specifically, the bill eliminates reverter or forfeiture provisions (legal clauses that could cause property to revert to a previous owner under certain conditions) in deeds, wills, or other documents that were executed more than 75 years ago. These provisions relate to specific types of property ownership known as fee simple determinable, fee simple subject to condition subsequent, and fee simple subject to executory limitation. For any such provisions created after July 1, 2025, the bill renders them entirely invalid. For existing provisions, property owners can preserve their current interests by filing a sworn statement in their county's register of deeds office by July 1, 2026, which will extend the current property arrangement for an additional five years. After this period, any remaining restrictions will be automatically converted to fee simple absolute ownership, which provides the most complete and unrestricted form of property ownership. The bill aims to simplify property ownership by eliminating complicated historical land ownership constraints and preventing new such restrictions from being created, thereby making property rights more straightforward and absolute for current and future property owners in Tennessee.

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https://wapp.capitol.tn.gov/apps/Billinfo/default.aspx?BillNumber=SB0896&ga=114