Legal Question in Real Estate Law in California

Re: Taking a person off title

My first reaction was to answer "No," but the more I thought about it, the more possibilities for this to happen I came up with. Most of them are pretty far-fetched, and I think the right answer is "It isn't very likely," but consider the folllowing:

1. Fraud. A forged deed could accomplish the result. A court would nullify the transaction upon proof of the fraud, but if the person acquiring title by fraud had first re-sold to a bona fide purchaser without notice of the fraud, recovery of the property could be questionable. You would only have a claim for damages against the perpetrator.

2. If there were a lien against your half interest, it could be foreclosed, perhaps even by your co-owner. Normally this requires notice to you, but if you were un-locatable, perhaps it could occur without your actual knowledge.

3. It's very difficult for a joint tenant to lose title to the other joint tenant by adverse possession. An ouster is required, and if you're ousted, you'll usually know about it. Further, after legal title passes by adverse possession, it still takes a court action to get that reflected in the official records. However, it could happen and I imagine in the history of California it probably has occurred a dozen or more times.

And so on......

However, in the everyday world, chances of losing a cotenancy interest without actively causing it, without knowing about it, or at least having a strong hunch or reason to suspect something was going on, are very remote.

I should add that it is relatively easy for one joint tenant to sever the joint tenancy unilaterally and without the other's knowledge. However, all this does is convert the joint tenancy into a tenancy in common. The former joint tenants no longer "automatically" inherit the other's interest, i.e. there is no longer a right of survivorship, but the ownership interests remain as before.

Re: Taking a person off title

Only by court order or fraud. However, one joint tenant may seek partition (either a division of the property if reasonable or sale of the property with division of the net proceeds). Let me know if you need assistance in this regard.

Re: Taking a person off title

Not normally. Were you taken off? You may contact me.