VIC Legal Rights of Tenants in Common?

[Jaydana]

Hi,

A brother and sister are tenants in common in the ownership of a house with no mortgage. They no longer speak, both use the house alternatively with their respective families at various times throughout the year. They split all bills half-half. The sister can't stand the brother and his family, and wants to dissolve the "tenants in common" by trying to force the brother to sell her his 50% share.

The brother has no desire to sell. The sister has sent a lawyers letter with her offer for the buyout of the 50% but the brother is not interested in selling. Does the brother have the right to stand his ground and say no and she can do nothing about it?

She also doesn't want to sell the house, she wants it for herself. It has been in the family for quite a few years. She just wants the brother out of the ownership. Please let me know if legally she can not force the brother to sell his share to her if he doesn't want to.

 

[John R]

The sister may consider making a claim at VCAT to resolve the dispute. See Co-owned Land and Goods | VCAT
Victorian solicitors with LIV membership can also find more information at Co-ownership disputes - Law Institute of Victoria

 

[Atticus]

The sister can't stand the brother and his family, and wants to dissolve the "tenants in common" by trying to force the brother to sell her his 50% share.

The brother has no desire to sell.

In this instance, ie, neither party wanting to sell & not being a domestic relationship, no court can FORCE a co owner to sell, especially as the property is being lived in by both... It could force a sale of the entire property & divide proceeds accordingly

 

[Jaydana]

The sister may consider making a claim at VCAT to resolve the dispute. See Co-owned Land and Goods | VCAT
Victorian solicitors with LIV membership can also find more information at Co-ownership disputes - Law Institute of Victoria

Hi John, thanks for your response, but in this instance there is no such "dispute", it is a holiday house, 50% shared by brother and sister as left to them by their parents. Both pay the bills equally and both use it as I said equally with their families from time to time throughout the year. The sister though (control freak) doesn't want the brother to co-own the house with her now, wants him to sell her his share. We don't want to sell, we want to keep using it as we have been. If anything, we are the ones who go there to do the gardening and lawn maintenance, they don't. So really what grounds except greed on her behalf, does she have to lodge at VCAT and have a relevant case against us to make us sell our 50% share? She does not want to sell the house as I mentioned, she just wants it for herself 100% in name.

 

[John R]

Hi @Jaydana,
The sister can make a claim to VCAT if she believes that both siblings can't otherwise agree on her preferred resolution informally.
Until any claim is made and heard at VCAT, both siblings will just need to continue to tolerate each other and live with the current state/situation.