Real Estate Law

[Tiana]

My brother and I bought 14 acres of land together as joint tenants a year ago with the intent of retiring together (he's divorced with no children and I am single with no children) and building a house that we would share. However, within the past year, completely unexpectedly I now have a serious boyfriend and I have changed my mind about my retirement plans with my brother. I asked him if he wanted to buy my share of the land and he said yes. I told him that all he had to do was repay me what I've paid on the land, and come up with the collateral for the loan and it was his free and clear. He already paid a large portion of the price for the land when we bought it and the remaining portion was financed on a loan from the bank with my house being used as collateral. Now, for some reason he is not speaking to me at all and I believe he feels betrayed and hurt. I've tried to explain that I am very happy with this new relationship. I have known this person for a long time, but the romance just started to blossom a few months ago. I am now afraid that my brother is going to try to force me to live up to my share of the orginal agreement by not buying me out. Would it be legal to sell my portion without his permission even though the deed says "tenants in common?" Thank you very much.

[cjw1199]

Probably not. You couldn't force your brother to become partners with a stranger. The land would have to be subdivided first. I'm no expert in this area of law though. To speak directly with an attorney on this matter and any other legal matter you have, see my website at: challengefate.com