HOME / PROPERTY LAW DEVELOPMENTS /

Concurrent or common ownership

Texas Supreme Court interprets life estate as a fee simple because the remainders were subject to divestment

In Jordan v. Parker, 2022 WL 17998227 (Tex. Dec. 30, 2022), the Texas Supreme Court held that a conveyance of a life estate actually conveyed a fee simple since the remainders were subject to alteration or even complete divestment by the life estate owner. In this case, a man devised his entire estate to his widow for life with remainders in their children, but the devise...

Read more about Texas Supreme Court interprets life estate as a fee simple because the remainders were subject to divestment

Short-term rentals do not violate “residential use only” covenant

The Mississippi Supreme Court has held that short term rental of property is not a commercial use that would violate a covenant limiting land to residential purposes. Lake Serene Prop. Owners Ass’n v. Esplin, 334 So.3d 1139 (Miss. 2022). There has been some disagreement among state courts on this question because the use of property as an Airbnb or other short term...

Read more about Short-term rentals do not violate “residential use only” covenant

Homeowners Association architecture regulations must be reasonable and authorized by governing documents

The Nevada Supreme Court adopted §6.7 and §6.9 of the Restatement (Third) of Property (Servitudes) and held that restrictions on construction (including architectural review committees) are only valid if owners are on notice of them and they exercise their powers “reasonably.” Moretto Trustee of the Jerome F. Moretto 2006 Trust, v. ELK Point Country Club...

Read more about Homeowners Association architecture regulations must be reasonable and authorized by governing documents

Restraint on partition or conversion of joint tenancy interest to tenancy in common is an invalid restraint on alienation

A deed prohibiting joint tenants from suing for partition or converting their joint tenancy interest into a tenancy in common without the consent of the other owners was an invalid restraint on alienation and unenforceable. Mindock v DuMars, 2022 WL 1410017, 2022 US App LEXIS 12044 (10th Cir 2022). The court did not accept the argument that the restraint was reasonable as a...

Read more about Restraint on partition or conversion of joint tenancy interest to tenancy in common is an invalid restraint on alienation

Physical partition denied when the sale value significantly exceeds the value of the separate parcels despite a co-owners attachments to the land

The Nebraska Supreme Court held that partition by sale is preferred to physical partition if the fair market value of the land as a whole exceeds the market value of separate parcels even if a co-owner objects to the sale because of sentimental attachments to the land. FTR Farms, Inc. v. Rist Farms, Inc., 942 N.W.2d 204 (Neb. 2020). A somewhat similar case came out the...

Read more about Physical partition denied when the sale value significantly exceeds the value of the separate parcels despite a co-owners attachments to the land

Proceeds of partition by sale divided according to ownership interests without any credit given to co-owner whose funds were used to buy the property

Because the Texas partition statute requires the proceeds of a partition sale to be divided "according to [the owners'] just rights therein," joint tenants were entitled to 50% of the sale proceeds even though one of the co-owners had used his own funds to purchase the property. ...

Read more about Proceeds of partition by sale divided according to ownership interests without any credit given to co-owner whose funds were used to buy the property

Will devising home to testator's four children and his widow that allowed her to "remain" in the home "for as long as she desires" gave her a tenancy in common interest with protection from removal by partition

In an older case that came to my attention, the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court held that a will that gave a widow the right to "remain" in the home "for as long as she desires" did not create a life estate when her interest was shared with the decedent's four children. Hershman-Tcherepnin v. Tcherepnin, 891 N.E.2d 194 (Mass...

Read more about Will devising home to testator's four children and his widow that allowed her to "remain" in the home "for as long as she desires" gave her a tenancy in common interest with protection from removal by partition

Bankruptcy law preempts state tenancy by the entirety law

The Bankruptcy Code allows forced sale of property owned by a married couple as tenants by the entirety against the will of the non-debtor spouse. In re Green, 2018 WL 4944988 (Bankr. E.D. Mass. 2018) (interpreting 11 U.S.C. §363(h)).

Tenancy by the entirety interests can be sold to satisfy debts of one spouse

A bankruptcy court in Massachusetts has ruled that state tenancy by the entirety law is preempted by  the Bankruptcy Code, §363(h)–(j), interpreting federal law to authorize the forced sale of tenancy by the entirety property over the objections of the non-debtor spouse to satisfy the debts of the debtor spouse. Desmond v. Green, 2018 Bankr. LEXIS 3136 (Bankr. D. Mass. 2018).

Seventh Circuit holds that the Fair Housing Act prohibits discrimination based on sexual orientation

Extending a former precedent concerning employment discrimination, Hively v. Ivy Tech Community College of Indiana, 853 F.3d 339 (7th Cir. 2017), a three judge panel of the Seventh Circuit has held that discrimination based on sexual orientation in housing is a form of sex discrimination prohibited by the Fair Housing Act. Wetzel v. Glen St. Andrew... Read more about Seventh Circuit holds that the Fair Housing Act prohibits discrimination based on sexual orientation