[randle]

I own property with a house on it with a brother as tennants in common , my brother , an attorney, wants to partition the property , and sell it at public auction . I would prefer to purchase his 1/2 interest at a fair market price and keep the property so family , cousins and relatives can use it as it was left for that purpose by our father. Is this a reasonable thing to do and can I purchase his 1/2 interest. Anyone ever had this situation or know of a court case that would support what I want to do.

[LisaB4657]

Of course you can purchase his share of the property. In fact, if your brother files a lawsuit for partition the first thing the court will do is inquire whether either of you has tried to sell your share to the other. Partition is an extreme remedy that is not granted unless all other avenues have been exhausted.

Get an appraisal of the property in writing and provide a copy of the appraisal to your brother along with a formal written offer to purchase his share of the property for 1/2 of the appraised value. And you'd better retain an attorney to represent you in this. If he accepts the offer you'll need someone to handle the closing and if he doesn't accept the offer you'll need someone to represent you in the court case.