How to end co-ownership of a plot, house or flat

A property owned by several co-owners belongs to each of them in a defined share. There is, however, a way to end co-ownership of a plot, house or flat. Several routes lead to such proceedings. We briefly describe all aspects of the issue.

Several routes to ending co-ownership

Co-ownership of a plot, house or flat can be ended in two ways. It can be done through court proceedings (where the co-owners do not agree on the rules of division), or at the request of one of the co-owners, when the remaining persons entitled to ownership consent to it – in which case all that is required is a notarial deed (akt notarialny), and no court involvement is needed. Matters connected with this issue are described in the Civil Code. Information on this subject can be found in Articles 195 to 221.

Ending co-ownership at a notary's office

The procedure discussed here is a legal act in which a person authorised to draw up the appropriate document – a notary – must take part. The notarial deed drawn up by the notary should contain the arrangements the owners of the property in question have agreed among themselves, that is, the holders of fractional shares in its ownership. As part of the proceedings the notary will make the relevant entries in the land and mortgage register (księga wieczysta) of the property that has until now been shared. In this situation the parties to the proceedings conclude an agreement between themselves setting out the rules for dividing the property, and court involvement is not necessary.

SEE ALSO – TRANSFER OF OWNERSHIP OF A PROPERTY

Ending co-ownership in court

Carrying out the necessary steps with a notary is possible when the parties entitled to the property are not in conflict with one another. The situation is different when they disagree about who has the right to ownership and to what extent. The case must then be brought before a court. When the court rules on the matter, three scenarios are possible. First, it may order a physical division of the property. Second, it may award the property to one of the co-owners or to several of them and order them to pay off the others. In the third case a ruling may be issued under which the property must be sold and the proceeds divided among the co-owners. It is worth noting that the court most often urges the parties to the dispute to settle it amicably; if they do not, it divides the property, where that is possible. In this situation payments must also be made to the persons who are entitled to them under the ruling.

There are two routes to ending co-ownership. We have described their details in the article. All the details concerning a specific property are, however, worth discussing with experts. In matters that require it, professional advice is provided by the experts at the REMAX Gold estate agency.