What If an Executor or Administrator is Blocking the Sale?
What If an Executor or Administrator is Blocking the Sale?
Distribution of Property
RPAPL § 993, also known as the Uniform Partition of Heirs Property Act, acts as an excellent solution for settling multiple heir estate disputes, and ensures proper sales oversight and proper distributions.
New York statute was created to protect heirs and families from unfair or below-market forced sales - and to make sure the process of dividing or selling inherited property is fair, structured, and supervised by the court.
When Should You Consider a RPAPL § 993 Petition?
You co-own inherited property with relatives. It is especially useful when your co-heirs disagree over what to do with the property.
There's no written agreement about selling or managing the property.
A third-party investor wants to force a sale.
You want the opportunity to buy out other owners at a fair market value.
You want a sale to happen on the open market (not at auction).
You're looking for a court supervised resolution.
How Does RPAPL § 993 Work?
Step 1: Court Review - The judge determines if the property qualifies as "heirs' property." This determines if the property is owned by multiple heirs after the passing of the original owner. This also determines if any written agreements were produced directing the eventual management of the property.
Step 2: Appraisal - A neutral, court-appointed appraiser sets the market value.
Step 3: Buyout Opportunities - Co-owners other than the petitioner have a chance to buy out the interest in the property within 45 days at the appraised value.
Step 4: Division of Sale - If there is no buyout, the court decides whether to split the property or sell it on the market (with a Real Estate Broker).
What If an Executor or Administrator is Blocking the Sale?
Common examples of this are:
Refusing to cooperate with the RPAPL § 993 process.
Failure to list or sell the property.
Using their fiduciary power to delay a resolution.
In this case, you may also need to file in Surrogate's Court to Remove or Compel the Fiduciary under SCPA § 711 § 719.
In this situation, you will need to create a petition setting forth the reasons for removal. Some examples could be Self-Dealing, Stealing, Ignoring or Failing to adhere to Court Orders, or general mismanagement of assets.
File in Supreme Court under RPAPL § 993 and in Surrogate's Court to replace the estate representative.
Why RPAPL § 933 is Better than Traditional Partition
Compared to older partition laws that often lead to court auctions (and lowball prices), RPAPL § 993 provides:
A court-supervised appraisal
A chance for co-heirs to buy each other out
A real sale - not an auction
Protection from predatory investors
At McKernan Law, we handle the full spectrum of estate and property disputes - from partition actions to fiduciary removals and everything in between. If you or someone you know is dealing with an inherited property stalemate, we can help.
This document is designed for general information only. The information presented in this document should not be construed to be formal legal or tax advice nor the formation of a lawyer/client.
For further information please contact me at www.kmckernanlaw.com kevin@kmckernan.com or 718-317-5007.