QUESTION

I own a home with a former domestic partner. I purchased(cash) the home and added her name to the deed. I want to sell. Can I force the sale?

Asked on Sep 23rd, 2018 on Real Estate - Michigan
More details to this question:
I have moved out of home my former domestic partner lives there with our daughter. I cannot afford to keep two homes. She refused to buy me out or sell. She has demonstrated the unwillingness to perform any routine maintenance. Has only cleaned up the filth after I got CPS involved. She has invested no money or sweat into the property. She has paid 1/2 of taxes and insurance THIS YEAR ONLY. Prior to that refused to contribute.
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1 ANSWER

Real Estate Law Attorney serving Holland, MI at Cunningham Dalman
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Yes, but it is complicated and you may have to pay her money to do it.  The most effective route is a partition action.  In such an action, the court orders the property to be sold at a public auction and the proceeds divided between the owners.  If you hold title as joint tenants with full rights of survivorship, the sale is complicated because of the survivorship feature, but it is more likely you hold title as tenants in common or joint tenants.  At the auction sale, the bidding usually comes down to the competing owners; the one bidding more gets the property but has to pay the other their share of the winning bid price.  (In your case, if you win the bidding at $100,000, you will have to pay her $50,000.) Of course, existing mortgages have to be paid before the owners get any money.  You would need to have new financing lined up ahead of time.  As I mentioned, it is complicated.  Within a partition action, it is common to ask the court for an accounting if one party has been carrying a larger burden and another getting a larger benefit, as may be your case; in that case, the court may order that one party can recover a larger share of the net proceeds. Fortunately, becuase the sale at public auction usually does not generate a price anywhere near what could be obtained by a typical sale through a listing, the competing parties will often agree to put the property up for sale and split the net proceeds.  Obviously the lack of routine maintenance would impair the sale price to some extent.  If the net proceeds justify it, you may still want the court to order an accounting before splitting the net proceeds.
Answered on Sep 24th, 2018 at 6:56 AM

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