Legal Question in Real Estate Law in California

Lawsuit to partition the property.

Sell your share to a third party. It eliminates the lawsuit and saves you money and heartache.

The two prior answers are your two choices. The trouble is finding anyone who will buy a 1/4 interest. Of course if the three other owners are happy to have a non-family investor and formalize the governing of what is essentially a legal partnership anyway, you might then find a buyer. But otherwise, you will need to at least threaten a partition action. That is an action authorized by law for dealing with owners of property who cannot agree on what to do with it. In the old days the court would literrally divide the property. Now with the Subdivision Map Act and zoning laws, and most properties already having been divided to the smallest available size lot, the courts partition by sale. Generally the parties come to their senses and either agree to a buy-out or to list the property, but if it goes to trial, the court will order the property sold just as if it had been foreclosed on, liens will be paid first and the balance distributed to the owners.