You can force a sale

Ask the Lawyer
By Stewart J. Berger

Dear Ask the Lawyer:
My parents are deceased. Prior to their deaths, they transferred a property to me and my sibling. The deed reads "Equal tenants in common and not as joint tenants with right of survivorship."
I am estranged from my sister and do not speak to her. I do not want to keep the property. My sister has full use of the property and never offered to share it with me.
Can I force the property to be sold?
Please give me your advice.
G.H.

Dear G.H.
The deed is not worded properly. Nevertheless, it appears that the property is now owned equally between you and your sister. If one of you were to die, the property would pass to your estate and not to the surviving sibling.
Under these circumstances, you have a right to have the property partitioned. This means you must file the appropriate documents asking the courts to force a sale of the property. Your chances of success with this action are extremely high — probably 100 percent.
Once the property is sold, there is a convoluted system of apportioning the proceeds. All types of things are considered, such as who paid the mortgage, who lived in the property, who repaired and maintained the property, who paid the taxes, etc.
You should consult an attorney fully experienced in real estate matters. The sooner you address this issue, the better off you will be. ••

Stewart J. Berger is an attorney with offices at 7207 Rising Sun Ave. Questions and comments may be addressed to Ask The Lawyer, c/o The Northeast Times, 2512 Metropolitan Drive, Trevose, PA 19053