Where lands have been escheated to the state and the person last seized was a citizen or capable of taking and holding real property the commissioner shall fulfill any contract made by such person or by any person from whom his title is derived, in respect to the sale of such lands, so far only as to convey the right and title of the state, pursuant to such contract, without any covenants of warranty or otherwise, and shall allow all payment which may have been made on such contracts. If any part of such escheated land has been occupied under a verbal agreement for the purchase thereof, and the occupants have made valuable improvements thereon, such agreement shall be as valid and effectual as if it were in writing.
New York Legal Code