New Jersey Partition Law
How To File A Nj Property Partition Action To Protect Your Interest In Real Estate
When two or more parties own real estate, each party has an absolute right to partition that real estate if they no longer wish to own it. A partition action in New Jersey can be either voluntary or judicially enforced. If the parties can agree to the terms for dividing the property, they can negotiate and execute their own voluntary partition with the help of their attorneys. If not, they have the option of filing a court action to divide the land or home.
Once a NJ partition action is filed, the court can either physically divide the land in a partition in kind, or they can order a partition by sale. A partition by sale is the most common form of dividing property, because most properties cannot be physically divided when they include a home or structure on the land. The division of the proceeds or the land depends on the type of tenancy held by the parties when they took ownership. If they had a joint tenancy, then the parties will have to divide the property equally. If they were tenants in common, then they can divide it according to their percentage of ownership. If they were a married couple eligible for a tenancy by the entirety, then they will most likely partition the property as part of their divorce proceedings.
New Jersey is a lien theory state, which means that any bank or lender with an outstanding mortgage on the property must be satisfied before the property can be divided or sold. If you own land or buildings in New Jersey and you would like to partition them, you should contact an experienced real estate attorney to discuss your property rights.
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