Legal Question in Real Estate Law in California

The answer to your question requires more information. How did you take title to the property? Did you have a tenancy in common agreement before or after you bought the property? The general rule, if you took title as tenants in common is that you are each 50% owners unless otherwise indicated in the vesting. You can take her off-title by her recording a quitclaim deed transferring her interest to you, but she won't be off the loan without your refinancing the property with a new loan. The current lender won't generally let her off the loan. If you cannot agree as to how the division is to occur, then one of you (likely her) will have to file a lawsuit to "partition" the property. This may require the sale of the property. I encourage you to contact a local real estate attorney before this reaches that stage so you know what your rights and obligations are and can approach a settlement with her that will avoid litigation.

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There are three separate concepts to consider here:

(1) Who is responsible for the loan?;

(2) Who is/are shown as owner(s) of record down at the courthouse?; and

(3) Who is/are entitled, in law and equity, to be the owner(s)?

It sounds as though the answer to #1 is that you are both obligors (debtors) on the loan; that (as to #2) the title of record at the recorder's office (courthouse) will show the two of you as co-owners, probably as tenants in common; and as to #3, you are probably entitled to a court order that you should be the sole owner, that the girlfriend holds her one-half interest as trustee of an involuntary trust of which you are the beneficiary, and must convey her interest to you upon demand.

The principle underlying #3 is called "purchase-money resulting trust" and is a relatively well established part of California law. The law was taken out of the codes years ago, but without repealing the principles or affecting the case law. Basically, the law recognizes ownership in acquired property as following the sourcing of the down payment, unless the down payment was paid and intended as a gift, e.g., parent-child, at the time.

I have had success in prosecuting resulting trust cases in the courts and at the court of appeal, and if you'd like further analysis, let me know. In these days of decreasing equity in jointly-owned (of record) homes, there's been less activity in this area of the law, but if your 100% ownership is worth a court action, you should consider one. Please feel free to contact me directly.

I don't see your situation as a purchase money resulting trust. A purchase money resulting trust is applied when one person pays for the purchase of property, but another party gets title to the property in violation of an agreement between them. It would appear from your post that you are both on title, and that was part of your agreement.

I agree with Mr. Gibbs, that it would help to know how you hold title. If you are tenants in common, then you each own an undivided 50 percent share, unless title specifies something different. Witha tenantcy in common, however, the tenant who pays taxes or other liens against the entire property is entitled to contribution and an equitable lien on the shares of the cotenants for their proportional amount of expenditures.

I suggest you speak to a competent real estate attorney, and bring relevant documents, including the original purchase contract, any contracts between you and your girlfriend, the deed and any loan documents.