The Real Estate Disputes And Partition

What if two people pooled their resources and began investing in real estate. Like many partnerships things progress smoothly for a while and then a dispute arises.

Now they seldom can stand to talk to one another and then only through clenched teeth. A sad story, but one that is not uncommon.

What if they have an undivided interest in a fourplex. They want to end their investing enterprise, but they can't agree on the disposition of the property?

An action for partition may be the only solution. That means one of the investors turns to the court to decided how and when the interest in the property will be divided.

In a partition action the owner or claimant of real property or any interest in the property may compel a partition (division) of the property between him and other owners. It may vary from state to state, but in Arizona the partition complaint is filed in the superior court of the county in which the property is situated.

The court will hold a hearing to "determine the share of interest in the property sought to be divided of each of the owners or claimants, and all questions affecting the title..."

In other words... when those who have an undivided interest in a property can't agree on disposal the court can do it for them.

Here's another example of partition in action:

If an ex-wife or ex-husband refuses to sell their home or deed their interest to the other (and the real estate is not mentioned in the divorce decree) the only way the home can be sold is through a partition action.

When a husband and wife buy a home together, they own it as "tenants by the entirety". Upon the death of one spouse, the surviving spouse automatically becomes sole owner of the property. This is known as the "right of survivorship".