Can other joint owners take legal action to force the sale of property even if you do not agree with terms of the sale?
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Can other joint owners take legal action to force the sale of property even if you do not agree with terms of the sale?
For example, what if you don’t agree with price, buyer, real estate company, etc? What are the legal implications of not agreeing to sign appropriate legal documents as one party of several in an estate sale?
Asked on July 11, 2011 under Real Estate Law, Oklahoma
Answers:
M.D., Member, California and New York Bar / FreeAdvice Contributing Attorney
Answered 12 years ago | Contributor
If you don't agree with what the joint owners are doing, you can request what is know as a "partition". This is a legal remedy of "partition" available to co-owners of property when they cannot agree as to whether or not to sell the property (among other things). A partition allows for the division of property among co-owners if the property can be physically divided.
However, where division would be impracticable (as in the instance of a single family house) a judge would order a sale in lieu of partition and an equitable division of the proceeds among the co-owners. Before doing so however, the court would permit one co-owner to purchase the interest of the remaining co-owner at fair market value. This would mean that the property would still be sold, but under court supervision (as to specific terms regarding the buyer price, etc).
As it stands now, depending on the form of ownership, if you didn't sign they may not be able to sell without your signature. At this point you should consult directly with a real estate attorney in your area.
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