Dividing or Forcing a Sale of Co-Owned Property: Dependable, Practical Legal Help

Legal Advice & Representation for Obtaining Your Share of the Value of Co-Owned Property - by Experienced San Diego Attorneys

If you own real estate with another person, and you want to have the property sold so that you can receive your share of the proceeds, San Diego Law Firm can help you.  We assist people who are seeking to receive their share of the value of real estate that:

• They purchased along with a friend (or former friend)
• They inherited or received as a gift along with another person or family member 
• They own with a current or former business partner
• They own with any other person

Under California law, each co-owner of real estate generally has a right to have the real estate physically divided or sold with the proceeds distributed.  The legal term for this division is “partition.”  There are a few rare exceptions to the right to partition; we can advise you of these if they apply to your situation.  Although a court can order the property to be physically divided rather than sold, in most cases, the court will decide to order a sale because most property (especially a residence) cannot be equally divided. 

Our Legal Services for a Forced Sale or Division

As a co-owner, you usually have the right to sell the property, even if the other owners are against partition.  Personal property can also be divided in the same action as the real estate division.  We will review your title to determine what type of share you hold in the property and what your rights are.     San Diego Law Firm will handle all the necessary legal steps to separate your individual share in the real estate from that of your co-owners, as described below: 

• We will make sure that California law is complied with and every person who owns or claims to own a share in the property, or who has another type of interest in the property (such as a lien), is included in the partition action.

• We will prepare and file your court papers, which must include proper legal descriptions, identify ownership shares and other interests, and explain why the property should be sold, if you are seeking a sale.  We will also record notice of your partition action in all the proper counties, as required by California law.

• In representing you, we will appear at court hearings, and we will skillfully work to resolve any disputes among co-owners or other interest holders at trial or outside of court.

• The court will appoint a referee to have the property physically divided or sold, or to handle an appraisal if you and the other co-owners agree in writing to a buy-out and on price.  We will advise you on these various partition methods to determine what arrangement will be your best route for seeking individual ownership. 

• If the partition is by forced sale, the court will determine whether the property will be sold through a normal sale or by public auction where the court will sell to the highest bidder.

• Once the property is sold, expenses and liens must be paid off before you are compensated according to your ownership share, as determined in court.

Our Services Clearing Up Title and Ownership of Real Estate

Title problems affect your legal ownership.  San Diego Law Firm will help you with any title issues that may need to be resolved before your property can be successfully divided or sold.  Common problems occur when:

• The deed to inherited property was never transferred to your name
• You bought the property with co-owners but your name is not on the title
• Names of other persons who don't own the property are on the deed
• Someone who is holding your property for you in his or her name now refuses to transfer your property back to you
• The way a deed was written creates clouds on your title

Our legal assistance in clearing your title may include revising your deed, a “quiet title” lawsuit to establish your ownership, or a “constructive trust” so that property that someone is wrongfully holding is transferred back to you.

Resolution through a Forced Sale or Property Division

When property is co-owned, there are many different circumstances that create the need to sell or divide real estate, such as disagreements over the best use for the shared property.  By filing a partition action to divide the property and secure your individual share, we will help you move forward and toward new investments.

Benefits to Our Clients

We are committed to keeping our clients fully informed and offering them the guidance and support they need to make good choices between different legal alternatives.  San Diego Law Firm will ensure that all of your legal matters are supervised by a seasoned senior partner who will act as your Personal Legal Representative and oversee your legal affairs, even if another attorney is performing a particular service for you. For as long as we represent you, you will receive the same dedication and quality of service that brought you to us in the first place.

How to Contact San Diego Law Firm

We handle matters throughout California, and new clients are always welcome. For more information or to make an appointment, please contact us either by:

Telephone: (619) 794-0243

E-mail: contactus@SanDiegoLawFirm.com
 

We can be reached by telephone Monday through Friday, 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. You may also use the form below to contact us. This form is answered Monday through Friday during the work day. Please remember that for us to become your attorneys, we must first have a written attorney-client agreement signed by both of us, so please do not email any confidential information at this point. After we have reached an agreement with you, we can then exchange information freely. We look forward to helping you.

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