Partition Lawsuit California

In the state of California, when more than one party co-owns a piece of property, both parties have the right to seek a California partition action do divide their interest in the property. When parties inherit or purchase land jointly, sometimes after a period of time, they no longer wish to reside together or co-own the property. They then have a right to file a partition action in California, which will divide the property either through a partition in kind or a partition by sale.

The two main types of CA real estate partitions, partitions in kind and partitions by sale, divide the land in question either by physically carving out multiple pieces of property, or by selling the house at auction and dividing the proceeds, respectively. A partition in kind, where the land is physically divided, is usually only reserved for vacant land, or property that can easily be divided. A residential home will usually be partitioned by sale because it would be difficult, if not impossible, to physically split a home in half. When a piece of property is ordered to be sold, it is usually sold at a partition auction to the highest bidder, and this will usually be arranged by a neutral third party that is appointed by the court or agreed upon in the voluntary partition.

How much of a piece of property or how much of the proceeds are given to each owner depends on the manner in which they took title to the property in their original transaction. California has two main types of concurrent ownership tenancies: joint tenants and tenants in common. When a partition is filed for a property that is owned by joint tenants, the proceeds or physical land must be divided in equal shares, as the property was originally owned in equal shares. However, if they were tenants in common, then they take partition shares according to the amount that each party contributed to the original purchase of the property or the percentage amount laid out in a contractual agreement.

A California partition action of real estate is governed by property laws in the state. One such law is California’s adherence to title theory, which means that a lender or mortgage holder has title to a property through a deed of trust. This means that in a partition of real estate in California, the lender is a necessary party to any litigation regarding the property. The lender must be a party to the litigation, but that does not mean that the lender themselves can order a partition of the property that they hold a mortgage on. A lender’s remedy if the mortgage is not paid will remain in foreclosure actions against homeowners.

If you co-own a piece of land or a building in California, and you wish to file a partition action, you should speak with a knowledgeable real estate attorney in your area. Partition actions can be complicated and acrimonious. A seasoned California partition law attorney can help you make legal decisions and can protect your property rights.