Updated on October 28, 2022
After a judgment for partition by sale is obtained, most lawyers and clients alike are unaware of the procedure for executing the sale. Clients would be well served to understand the details in the final stage. We have outlined the basic steps below in order to aid any parties in this process:
The court will appoint a referee who will have authority to sell the property at either a public auction or a private sale, whichever one the court determines to be more beneficial to the parties. (C.C.P. 873.010, 873.520).
The parties will agree to terms and conditions of the sale in writing. If they cannot come to an agreement, the referee will recommend the terms and conditions to the court, and the court will hold a hearing to decide whether to accept that recommendation. (C.C.P. 873.610).
Notice of the sale must be given in accordance with California Code of Civil Procedure, Sections 873.640 and 873.650, which will include a description of the property, the time and place of sale, and a statement of the principal terms of sale. If the sale is a private sale, the notice must state a place where bids or offers will be received and a day on or after which the sale will be made. (C.C.P. 873.650).
Once the property is sold to the highest bidder at a public auction or private sale, the referee will report the sale to the court. (C.C.P. 873.710, 873.680). Then, the court must either confirm or vacate the sale. (C.C.P. 873.720). A court might vacate the sale and direct a new sale if: (C.C.P. 873.730)
Once the sale is confirmed, the court will order the referee to collect the proceeds of the sale. (C.C.P. 873.750). If the purchaser fails to pay the sale price, the court may order a resale of the property, or allow the referee to bring an action against the purchaser for the full amount of the sale price. (C.C.P. 873.760).
The referee will execute a conveyance or other instrument of transfer to the purchaser, which must be recorded. (C.C.P. 873.790).
The court will order proceeds of the sale to be paid out in the following order: (C.C.P. 873.820)
At Schorr Law, our real estate attorneys Los Angeles, have handled many partition cases. For help selling a property after a judgment or bringing a partition action contact Partition lawyer Los Angeles at (310) 954-1877, [email protected] or by using the Contact Form.
See related: Partition by Appraisal