Wisconsin 2025-26 Legislative Session Summary of Real Estate Laws

LAWS - PASSED 2025-26 SESSION AND SIGNED INTO LAW

• Real Estate Transfer Fee - New Exemption for Grandparents: AB82/SB84, now 2025 Wisconsin Act 38, was possibly the shortest and sweetest law passed this session, expanding the exemption from Wisconsin’s Real Estate Transfer fee in §77.25(8) to include conveyances between grandparents and grandchildren, stating in its entirety:
  • Section 1. 77.25 (8) of the statutes is amended to read: 77.25 (8) Between parent and child, stepparent and stepchild, parent and son-in-law or, parent and daughter-in-law, or grandparent and grandchild for nominal or no consideration.
• Prohibiting filing or recording contracts for services or materials that do not improve real estate, and providing a penalty: AB157/SB172, now 2025 Wisconsin Act 32, was a huge win for our Industry. Otherwise known as the “MV Realty Bill”, this bill was designed to target certain bad actors within the real estate industry, including MV Realty, who targeted vulnerable real property owners by offering upfront cash incentives in exchange for the owner entering into a non-improvement contract with the bad actor (the term “non-improvement contract” is defined in this new law). The property owner was often unaware that the non-improvement contract created a lien on the real property and resulted in large monetary fines if/when the property owner tried to cancel the contract. The signing of the MV Realty Bill into law created the following mechanisms to prevent these types of practices:
  • Creating §59.43(1k) - Authority to Reject Non-Improvement Contracts - providing authority to the register of deeds office to reject recording non-improvement contracts (or instruments relating to such contracts) and to return the contract (or related instrument) as unrecorded.
  • Creating §710.27(2)- Non-improvement contracts; recording prohibited - prohibits individuals from filing or recording non-improvement contracts (or related instruments) with the register of deeds office.
  • Creating §710.27(4) - Remedies - sets forth certain remedies available to real property owners if/when a non-improvement contract is recorded against their real property.
• Modernization for Real Estate recordings and transactions: Another short and sweet legislation, AB195 / SB193, now 2025 Wisconsin Act 60, tackled four areas of Wisconsin law to update and modernize real estate recordings:
  • Revising  §705.15, Wis. Stats. - Revocation of a transfer of real property on death - in response to some contentious and prolonged litigation, AB195 / SB193 brought  §705.15 in line with the Uniform Real Property Transfer on Death Act’s section on Revocation, requiring express language to be used on a TOD to revoke a previously recorded document. For a detailed review of these changes, see Hipenbecker and Grulkowski’s article published by the Wisconsin State Bar on December 17, 2025: Changes to Transfer on Death and Other Statutes, Update Forms Now.
  • Revising §§867.045 and 867.046  - Obtaining evidence of the termination of a decedent’s property interests - simplifying the recording of a Termination of Decedent’s Interest form (aka HT110) to provide that either the tax bill for the year preceding the year of the decedent’s death, or a copy of the most recent property tax bill, may be included with the HT110 when sent to a Register of Deeds for recording. Follow this link for a list of the Wisconsin counties that require a copy of the property tax bill with the HT110: https://www.wrdaonline.org/taxbill.
  • Revising §710.13(3)  - Real property wholesaler contracts; disbursing deposits after rescission - providing that if either a seller or a 3rd party assignee rescinds a contract with a “wholesaler” (as that term is defined in the statutes), the escrow agent may disburse earnest money or other funds to the party that rescinded the contract and is held harmless in doing so.
  • Revising §806.22 - Filing satisfactions of judgments - There was weird language in the statutes providing that in order to Satisfy a Foreign Judgment, the judgment creditor had to provide a Certified Copy of the Satisfaction as filed in the court of origin. For example, if the judgment arose in Milwaukee County Court, and that same judgment was transcripted to Waukesha County, in order to release the foreign judgment the creditor had to: (i) file a Satisfaction in Milwaukee County, (ii) obtain a Certified Copy of the Satisfaction from Milwaukee County, and (iii) then file the Certified Copy of the Satisfaction from Milwaukee County in Waukesha County. Ouch. This weirdness is fixed, and now the creditor can simply file an original Satisfaction in both Milwaukee and Waukesha Counties.
• Privacy Protections for Judicial Officers: In July of 2020, Daniel Anderl, the son of Federal Judge Esther Salas, was shot and killed by a disgruntled Manhattan lawyer who apparently found Judge Salas’ home address through the public land records. Since July of 2020, many states have enacted laws to shield the names and addresses of various public officials from public land records. In March of 2024, Wisconsin enacted 2023 Wisconsin Act 235, establishing certain privacy protections for judicial officers and their families upon submission of a written request. Although good, 2023 Wisconsin Act 235 was passed relatively quickly, and some clarification was needed. AB171 / SB169 (now 2025 Wisconsin Act 25) is a general cleanup bill adding various provisions including: (i) modifying the definition of a “written request” to include a requirement for notarization and (ii) requiring that the judicial officer describe with reasonable particularity the records the judicial officer believes to contain personal information. Of particular concern to our industry was access to records shielded at a Register of Deeds Office. AB171 / SB169 addressed our concerns by allowing title insurance companies, title insurance agents, and attorneys access to shielded records.
• Changes regarding the laws governing real estate practice: AB456/SB478, now 2025 Wisconsin Act 69, was advanced by the Wisconsin REALTORS® Association (WRA) to strengthen the real estate profession by promoting clarity, consistency, and consumer confidence. The new law governs real estate practice for one-to-four-family residential properties, and includes the following changes:
  • Creating §452.1355 - Transactions involving residential property - creates obligations for listing firms to share information about the listed property, respond to inquiries, show the property, and advertise the property on Internet platforms for transactions involving residential property. Property owners may choose to opt out of having the listing agent publicly advertise or market the owner’s property for sale. Additionally, property owners may identify specific licensees or buyers that the property owner does not wish to work with or allow to view the property.
  • Creating §452.136 - Advertising enhanced by technology - requires licensees to disclose if the advertising of real property has been altered or enhanced by technology, including artificial intelligence.
  • Creating §452.19(4) - Fees, commissions, and other compensation - prohibits a firm that is not the listing firm from receiving compensation from a party to a transaction that is not the listing firm’s client, unless the agreement to pay compensation to the listing firm is agreed to by all parties in writing in the offer to purchase. This section also requires a listing contract to include a statement as to whether the seller is authorizing the listing firm to disclose if the seller is offering compensation to another firm.

LAWS - PASSED 2025-26 SESSION AND WAITING GOVERNOR'S SIGNATURE

• Modernization at the Register of Deeds: AB445 / SB449 is the result of years of research and review by dedicated members of the Wisconsin Register of Deeds Association to modernize §59.43, which has the spot on title “Register of Deeds; duties, fees, deputies”. Reading this 40-page Bill (and if you are reading, please read the Assembly Substitute Amendment 1 from January 26, 2026) well, it’s not easy because of all of the internal references. Suffice it to say, this Bill was thoroughly vetted by members of the WLTA, RPPT, and WRA, and serves its purpose of modernizing the Registers of Deeds statute and enabling the recording of documents. Items of note:
  • Going forward, in the legal description for a recordable document, please identify the County where the parcel is located --- as a Register may refuse to record a document which fails to include the County - see the new §59.43(2s)(a)
  • One Mortgage = One Assignment/One Satisfaction  --- as a Register may refuse to record an assignment, subordination, partial release, or satisfaction that relates to more than one mortgage - see the new §59.43(2s)(b)(2)
  • Limit the use of correction fluid or tape ---  as a Register may refuse to record a document to which correction fluid or tape is affixed unless the correction is initialed by the person making the correction- see the new §59.43(2s)(c)(2)
  • Fraudulent documents are bad - a Register may not record a document that the Register reasonably believes is being recorded for a fraudulent or other unlawful purpose -  see the new §59.43(2s)(e)
  • Notwithstanding the foregoing, a Register may not refuse to record a document that substantially complies with §59.43(2s)(a-d) (the WLTA, RPPT and WRA worked collaboratively with the Registers of Deeds to get this language added).

• Modifications to housing programs under the Wisconsin Housing and Economic Development Authority: This is another set of Bills advanced by the WRA to address workforce housing and Wisconsin’s limited housing inventory. Per the WRA, Wisconsin needs 140,000 housing units by 2030 to keep pace with current demand. AB194/SB180 makes various modifications to three housing programs administered by the Wisconsin Housing and Economic Development Authority, including:
  • Infrastructure Access Program
    • Allows a loan made to a developer to provide up to 33% of the total project cost.
    • Allows a loan made to a governmental unit to provide up to 25% of the total project cost.
    • Allows loans to be made to tribal housing authority developers.
  • Restore Main Street Program
    • Allows loans of up to $50,000 per dwelling unit or 33% of the total project cost, whichever is less.
    • Allows loans to be made to projects administered by a federally recognized American Indian tribe or band.
  • Vacancy-to-Vitality Program
    • Allows loans of up to 33% of total project costs and eliminates dollar caps on loans.
    • Allows a project converting commercial property to a mixed-use property with residential housing to be eligible for a loan.
    • Allows loans to be made to tribal housing authority developers.

LAWS - INTRODUCED BUT DID NOT PASS

• Prohibitions on a “foreign adversary” from acquiring Wisconsin Real Property:  With some broad exceptions, Section 710.02, Wis. Stats., generally prohibits a nonresident alien or a corporation that is not created under federal law or the laws of any state (foreign person) from acquiring, owning, or holding more than 640 acres of land in this state. AB-030 / SB-007, passed both Houses but was vetoed by Governor Evers on March 20, 2026, sought to prohibit a “foreign adversary” from acquiring any land for agricultural or forestry purposes. The term “foreign adversary” would have been new to Wisconsin laws and defined as:
  • a foreign government or nongovernment person determined by the federal secretary of commerce to have engaged in a long-term pattern or serious instances of conduct significantly adverse to the national security of the United States or security and safety of U.S. persons
  Although the WLTA didn’t take a position on this legislation, we were concerned that if passed, the vagueness of what is a foreign adversary would have been problematic, along with the question about what happens if a foreign adversary purchased agricultural or forestry lands in Wisconsin. What was the proposed remedy? The answer is unclear.
   
  As you’ll see below, this is not the last time we'll see legislation introduced to limit foreign ownership of real property. Limiting laws of this nature have been introduced nationwide with various success - for reference, see ALTA's Title News from September 2023:  https://digital.titlenews.org/titlenews/library/.

• Prohibitions on “foreign persons” from acquiring Wisconsin Real Property:  In a similar vein to AB-030 / SB-007, AB218 / SB219 was introduced a few months later in the session, on April 23, 2025, seeking to limit the ownership of land in Wisconsin by foreign persons (as defined in §710.02(1)). Currently, §710.02 caps the ownership of lands by foreign persons at 640 acres. As introduced, AB218 / SB219 would have: (i) with exceptions, limited foreign persons from owning more than 50 acres in Wisconsin, and (ii) prohibited foreign persons from acquiring, owning, or holding any Wisconsin real property located on or within 10 miles of a military installation, as defined in the bill. AB218 / SB219  also included provisions similar to AB-030 / SB-007, prohibiting a “foreign adversary” from acquiring, owning, or holding any interest in real property in this state. AB218 / SB219 fixed at least one of the errors in AB-030 / SB-007, providing a remedy that any interest in real property acquired, owned, or held in violation of these new provisions would be forfeited to the State of Wisconsin. But AB218 / SB219 still suffered from vagueness and other enforcement issues. Despite public hearings held in June of 2025 and January of 2026, neither AB218/SB219 was put to a vote. Both Bills were laid to rest on March 23, 2026, pursuant to Senate Joint Resolution 1.
• Prohibitions on “a hedge fund” from acquiring Single-Family Homes in Wisconsin:  Yet another piece of legislation aimed at limiting ownership of real property in Wisconsin. AB213 / SB208 introduced a new concept in our statutes, defining the term “hedge fund” and then wholesale stating “A hedge fund may not acquire or own, in whole or in part, a single-family home in this state.” AB213 / SB208 proposed the same remedy as  AB218 / SB219, proposing that an ownership interest in a single-family home owned by a hedge fund would be forfeited to the State of Wisconsin.  No hearings were held on AB213 / SB208 and AB213 / SB208  suffered the same fate as B218 / SB219, being laid to rest on March 23, 2026 pursuant to Senate Joint Resolution 1.
• Remedies if a Voidable Provision is found in a Residential Lease/ Wisconsin Consumer Act: We suspect that we have not seen the last of AB202 / SB206, which successfully weaved its way through both Houses only to find the Governor’s Veto Pen on March 27, 2026. AB202 / SB206 was introduced in response to the Wisconsin Court of Appeals published decision in Koble Invs. v. Marquardt, 2024 WI App 26, regarding certain landlord-and-tenant matters. Koble involved a lease that was found void and unenforceable because it allowed a lease to be terminated if the premises were used for an “unlawful purpose” but without including the notice of domestic abuse protections required by §704.04.

• Manufactured Homes - streamlining titling and requiring written purchase contracts:  Like AB202 / SB206, we probably have not seen the last of AB549 / SB545 which was introduced relatively late in the session on October 15, 2025, and, somewhat miraculously, was able to be heard, passed both Houses, but then found the Governor’s Veto Pen on March 27, 2026. AB549 / SB545 was intended to help streamline and modernize the titling of Manufactured Homes. According to the recent HUD/Census summary, there are about 2.8 Million housing units in Wisconsin, of which about 85,000 are manufactured housing units. The title to a manufactured home is akin to a vehicle title, with a “pink slip” for the home issued and tracked by the Wisconsin Department of Safety and Professional Services. Most of the statutes in play, §§ 101.9203-9209, 101.921-101.9221, haven’t been touched in two decades, and an update to how pink slips for Manufactured Homes are transferred is due - hopefully AB549 / SB545  will be more successful in the 2027-28 Legislative Session.
• Taxation of Buildings on Leased Land: In June of 2023, 2023 Wisconsin Act 12 eliminated Wisconsin’s personal property tax, removing the option of assessing buildings and improvements on leased land as personal property. Starting with the 2024 assessment, local property assessors were required to assess buildings and improvements on leased land as real property. This has caused some confusion for various types of leased lands in Wisconsin, such as municipal airports, where the municipality owns the dirt and private parties own the hangars, and mobile home and manufactured home parks, where a landlord owns the dirt and private parties own the mobile/manufactured home. Coming out of 2023 Wisconsin Act 12, the Wisconsin Register of Deeds, Assessors, the WLTA and others created a new form for the conveyance of building(s), fixture(s), and/or improvement(s) on leased lands, exempt lands, forest croplands or managed forest lands, as identified under Wis. Stat. §70.17(3) titled the “Building(s), Fixture(s), and/or Improvement(s) Document”.

• Regulation and credentialing of appraisers and appraisal management companies: AB557/SB543 sought to make various changes to the current licensing and credentialing of appraisers and appraisal management companies operating within the State. Among those changes was the removal of the requirement that a real estate appraiser applicant be 18 years old. Additionally, the bill sought to increase the limit for which a residential appraiser may perform an appraisal for a commercial property from $250,000 to $500,000. The bill was introduced on October 15, 2025, and, like other bills discussed above, was laid to rest pursuant to Senate Joint Resolution 1.