Q: 3 siblings inherit home 2 want to sell 1 doesn't. What are our options

A: It’s not a majority vote issue. If any owner wants to sell, they can petition for sake in lieu of partition. The attorney fees will be reimbursed from the sale. The only defenses are that the property can be partitioned or the tenant in residence gets the notice given to tenants. Get counsel.

A: The answer partly depends on what you mean by "inherit." More specifically, in whose name is the deed? That/those person(s) are the owners. If by "inherit" you mean a Will describes intention, but a new deed has not issued from the Estate, that is a different analysis.

Assuming there is a deed with all names, then either all must agree, or someone needs to obtain a court order directing the sale. It only takes one to demand a sale--Maryland law doesn't force unwilling partners to continue in business together.

Somewhere between filing a complaint and a court order there is ample opportunity for a negotiated settlement.

A: Hi,

This is a pretty common scenario. What options the family has depends in large part on where you are in the inheritance process. If the property is still in the name of the deceased person, then the Personal Representative usually has very wide discretion to sell the property and give the proceeds (after expenses of course) to the heirs OR to disburse the property "in kind" by deeding it to the heirs. Typically a Personal Representative does not need the consent or advice of the heirs.

If you mean that the probate process has completed (or if the property transferred outside of probate) and the property has already been transferred into the name of the heirs, then those heirs own it. No one or two co-owners can sell the property without consent of ALL the owners. (Technically part owners may be able to sell THEIR part alone but it would be extremely unusual to find someone looking to buy 1/3 or 2/3 of a house).

There is a court procedure as another attorney alluded to, called a "sale in lieu of partition" which means if the owners simply cannot agree one or more of the owners can petition the court to force a sale. However, that is full court litigation and requires filing a lawsuit and getting a third party (called a trustee) appointed by the court to take over the property and decide how they want to sell it.

Nearly always a court case forcing a sale is a last resort -- everyone loses money as that approach requires paying court fees, lawyer fees, court appointed trustee fees, etc. The co-owners may wish instead to explore mediation where they can talk through options (for example, can the one owner who wants to keep buy out the others?) Prince George's County has some mediation services available. You can find a list of some mediation options at the Circuit Court's website: https://mdcourts.gov/macro/adr/princegeorges

If you do the hard work of sitting down and mapping out a solution all the siblings can agree to, a real estate attorney can help with documenting through a buy-out deed, or perhaps a formal agreement for a future sale.

While not legal advice nor a substitute for sitting down with an attorney, I hope this answer helps!