Legal Question in Real Estate Law in California
How can I sell half of my house?
My friend owns a house with an upstairs unit
which he has always rented out. Now he wants to sell the upper half of this house to me.
How could we proceed in regard to title, property tax, insurance, etc? What real estate codes govern this?
1 Answer from Attorneys
Re: How can I sell half of my house?
This may be a complicated transaction, legally. He probably cannot
sell the "upper half", as that is not a separate parcel. You can obtain
an interest in the property as a tenant in common, combined with an agreement on use of the property, etc., but
this has to be checked against local codes, and must be drafted very carefully
to cover all contingencies and to bind future buyers. An agreement like this may actually
decrease the value of the house, as few purchasers want to buy into an arrangement like that (except
in some areas where they are fairly common). A long term lease may meet some of your goals equally.