Partitioning Undivided Interests in Land.
In this video, Attorney Philip Hundl talks about the steps involved in partitioning undivided interests in land. Mr. Hundl is a Shareholder of the law firm of Wadler, Perches, Hundl & Kerlick, which has offices in Wharton and El Campo in Wharton County, Richmond and Fulshear in Fort Bend County and Bay City in Matagorda County. Call or text us at 800-929-1725 or send us an email using our contact form for an appointment.
Summary of Dividing Undivided Interests in Land
– Hi, I’m Philip Hundl. I’m an attorney at Wadler, Perches, Hundl and Kerlick. Today, I’d like to talk about undivided interest owners in land. Oftentimes, persons own property as an undivided interest owner in a tract of land.
For example, there’s 100 acre tract of land, and a person may be a 50% owner in that 100 acre tract. There’s a misconception that the person owns 50 acres of the 100 acres because he or she owns one-half interest in the land. Well, the person actually owns 50% of the 100 acres. The person only owns a percentage of the total tract of land.
What can one do if they are an undivided interest owner and would like to partition or sell their interest in that tract of land? The property code, Texas Property Code Section 23 gives certain procedures for an undivided interest owner to either partition that tract of land in which they own an interest in or ask the court to actually sell the whole tract and portion out the proceeds from that sale.
I would highly recommend Philip to anyone. He worked hard for us and is very professional and honest. He represents his prossion well. He even followed up after the settlement to see if the pipeline company is treating us right.
Jon F.
GatherUp ReviewCommissioners Can Recommend a Way to Divide the Property
There are certain steps to go through, and it’s done in court through a judge. Initially, a petition for partition is filed with the court. The judge can appoint commissioners, normally three commissioners, to go out and review the property and determine how it can be partitioned. The commissioners can devise a recommended way to partition or divide that tract of land.
If the land can, in the minds of the commissioners, be partitioned, then it would be suggested for partition. The court would review the commissioners’ recommendations at a hearing and either determine that whether the land can be partitioned or not.
What Happens If the Property Can’t Be Divided
If the property cannot be divided, then the other alternative would be to sell the property and divide the funds amongst the interest owners. Or an owner of an undivided interest can just directly ask the court to sell the property, because in his or her mind, it cannot be partitioned.
There are several alternatives for an undivided interest owner. Sometimes, undivided interest owners feel like they’re stuck because they own a piece of property with 10 other individuals.However, the law does provide for a remedy and alternatives or outlet, an outlet for an undivided interest owner.
Get an Appointment to Get Started
Call or text 800-929-1725 for an appointment at any of our five offices in Wharton County, Fort Bend County and Matagorda County. Appointments can be online, in-person or by phone.
