Adverse possession is not merely doing or paying things for a property; it is occupying the property openly (so that others can see not just that someone is occupying it, but that YOU are doing so), against the interest of the actual owner, for a number of years. I believe that in LA, if you have a deed (even there is a defect in it; that is, it's not sufficient to actually give you ownership), you only need to occupy the property for around 10 years, but without a deed, you may need to occupy it for 30 years to claim adverse possession.