Q: I inherited my mother’s property with a 50/50 undivided split I want to rent out a room do I need her approval to rent
I know I would have to give her half the rent money and she doesn’t want to buy me out can the land be subdivided and then. I would sell my half ? This is in Maryland
A: No, a court cannot subdivide a house. What you can do is petition a court to “sell the house in lieu of partition,” a legal action that results in the court appointing a trustee to list and sell the jointly owned property and divide the proceeds among the owners in accordance with their interest in the property. I do not see a good situation occurring if you unilaterally rent out a room in the house without your co-owner’s agreement or consent as to how that is to be managed. If you want to force the sale, I recommend you hire a lawyer to send your co-owner a letter outlining your intentions and offering to work out mutual agreed terms as to how that can be accomplished peacefully and at the least cost and maximum net profit. You may even offer her a period of time to continue living in the property before it gets listed as a means to entice her into cooperating in signing a sales and listing agreement, or to provide her the option of buying you out by a certain date. If that does not result in a written agreement, then you file suit.
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