Legal Question in Business Law in New York

Re: Ownership of a Home.

As long as a person's name is on the deed, and there is no agreement to the contrary, that person is a part owner of the real estate. Of course, that part owner is responsible for payment of the applicable portion of the costs incurred in maintaining the property. You have a problem, but not an insurmountable one.

Re: Ownership of a Home.

Your question has many facets to it, and I cannot advise you since I don't have all the information I need. These are just the few that spring to the top of my mind. This listing is NOT all-inclusive, but it will give you a good starting place when you talk with your attorney about this matter.

First, your attorney (who will not be me; I don't concentrate in real estate law) will need to know whether, when the other party left, you bought out their interest in the house (i.e., did any money change hands with a written agreement, or did you render a valuable service to the other person with the written agreement that the service was in lieu of money to purchase that person's half of the interest in the property). This agreement, since it would have conveyed an interest in real property, would have to have been in writing and signed by both of you.

Second, your lawyer will need to know whether there was some contract in place (say, each of you agreed to pay half the mortgage? perform half the upkeep? pay for half the expenses that every house incurs?) that has been breached. This one needn't have been written, although it would be significantly better if it was written.

Third, your lawyer will need to know the situation that caused the other person to leave (divorce/separation? big fight between roomies? just up and left?).

Fourth, your lawyer will need to know how long it has been since the other person left the property and has had nothing to do with it.

Once again, this is NOT an all-inclusive listing, but it'll give you a good start with the lawyer you hire to handle this for you.

Bite the bullet and hire a lawyer. You're looking for someone who concentrates their practice in real estate law. You can get referrals from your friends, possibly from your local bar association, or certainly from the NYS Bar Association (www.nysba.org), or you can open the yellow pages and close your eyes and call the first lawyer you point to.

Good luck.

THE INFORMATION PRESENTED HERE IS GENERAL IN NATURE AND IS NOT INTENDED, NOR SHOULD IT BE CONSTRUED, AS LEGAL ADVICE. FOR SPECIFIC ADVICE ABOUT YOUR PARTICULAR SITUATION, CONSULT YOUR ATTORNEY.