Real estate with split ownership

My mom has 1/3 share of a house. So does my aunt. They desperately want to sell it and have felt that way since the passing of my grandmother.

My uncle is the other third. He’s a real estate investor and he wants to, at some point, fix it up and make some money on it.

That’s the “plan” but no action is ever taken and the property just sits vacant year after year.

Neither my mom nor my aunt care about that at all. Besides him simply buying them out, is there anything they can do to force his hand?

in EstatePlanningby realtorvicvinegar

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29d

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sunset-tx-armadillo

29d

I had this same thing happen with myself and 3 siblings. Co-owners on 3 lots, one lot with a house, large garage/barn with second floor 1200 sq ft apartment. Seventy acre ranch. My siblings wanted to buy me out but at $.25 on the dollar. I refused.

BTW-not one of the four owners wanted to live or keep the property. But one of my sisters is married to a realtor and they wanted it as an investment property but for pennies on the dollar.

COVID hit, prices skyrocketed, etc. I forced the sale through the civil court under Partition to Sale under inherited heirs property code in our state (Texas). Nearly five years later and expensive legal fees, I will finally see the end to this mess next month.

Recommendations: 1. Lawyers are NOT created equal. Find one you can trust that is local to the area the property is located. They will know the local judges and how the system works in their area.

Realize this is a civil lawsuit and an excruciating slow, painful & expensive process. Push your lawyer, challenge them & ask questions.
Do your research on the law you are pursuing this lawsuit under. Know it as well as your lawyer and ask questions.

In our state, the Partition to Sale under inherited property code is a new law from 7-8 years ago. Neither my lawyer nor my siblings lawyer had ever worked a case like this. But neither had the judge-it was a new, learning experience for all. Surprisingly, often your lawyer may need to guide & present the nuances of a new law to the judge. It’s their job.

Luckily, in my case all 5 motions the judge had to rule on were decided in my favor. But I learned the new law and asked lots of questions of my lawyer. Document & keep copies of everything in your personal files.

You need to realize you are NOT your lawyers only client. You will need to communicate & question their actions to expedite the process. I had 2 lawyers throughout the 5 years-fired the first one. You pay them a lot of money, so find one you can work with.
Realize you will need to have a court ordered appraisal, but make sure the right appraiser will be hired. In my case with the 3 lots, 2 of those lots had investment/commercial opportunities. So I pushed to have all 3 lots appraised by a licensed Certified General Appraiser NOT a residential one. It doubled the value of the property, if not more.

Bottom line, as much as I hated this mess, I would do it again. My parents wanted a “four equal ways” division of their assets-that is all I wanted too. Good luck!

FinancialDocument115

29d

Great advice!