Evicting co owner?

[gracie1965 0]

I am in michigan. My mother passed away in July of 2010. She had left the family home deeded to myself and my three younger brothers with the understanding that I would move in when she passed. I tried to make her make my moving in legal rather than an understanding. I knew they wouldn't like it but anyway the middle brother lived with my mom and was here when we moved in with the understanding that he was to move out. Well here it is the beginning of March and he has of course changed his mind and is now in what was to be my son's bedroom and says he is going no where.

He pays no bills, does not work, he is an alcoholic who smokes and cooks while drunk and at all hours of the day and night and has started many small fires and burned up many of my mother's pans, he got his inheritance money and went and lived at his girlfriend's house coming here maybe a total of 4 times between Nov. and late Feb. Now he is broke. So he has decided to come back here and live for free.

He steals money, meds, bottles, cigarettes and anything else he can get his hands on. He sneaks our food when we leave the house and go to bed. He goes through our things all the time. He did buy a used truck with his money but it sits in the driveway because he cannot afford to put gas in it.

I am wondering if since he is not paying any of the sewer, taxes, and insurance can I evict him based on unpaid household obligations. After all if he just lived here alone and didn't pay any taxes he would lose the house. I cannot afford to buy him out, not sure if he would take it, but if I could I would.

He even crawls in the windows because he is too drunk to keep a key. He has consistently lost them in the past.

Please if anyone know anything help.

Thanks,

Chris

[Fallen 5]

I'm afraid you aren't in a position to enforce some informal understanding. If your mom wanted you to have exclusive possession of the place, she ought to have either transferred ownership to you alone, or maybe set up a trust in which the directive was that the trust would own it and you'd have a life estate, but than when you died, the property would transfer to whomever.

While you're free to report his thefts to the police, they may not do much.

No, I'm afraid you aren't in a position to evict him. You're free to sue him for his share of the upkeep costs and then ultimately put a lien on his interest in the property, but unless and until it's sold, it will just sit there collecting judgment interest.

Other than the ability for the other owners to ask a court to order the place sold and the proceeds divided, there's not much you can do here if he's a co-owner.

[gracie1965 0]

Thank you for your response despite the depressing news. What if the three siblings offered to buy him out and he took it. I am thinking on taking out a mortgage with all siblings blessing then buying him out. Is this an option?

[Fallen 5]

Given you said you couldn't afford to buy him out and that you didn't think he'd agree anyway, you very clearly considered the oh-so-obvious solution to the problem and discarded it ... that's why I didn't bother to bring it up.

Hate to answer a question with a question, but why on Earth would you think it isn't an option?

[gracie1965 0]

This home I am in is the house my grandparents built and died in, my mother moved in 2005 and when she passed I moved in. I have been here a very short time and have never owned a home before let alone with three other people. Asking what my options are seemed perfectly reasonable to me. The option of mortgaging came to me as I was typing so I figured hey, throw that out there.

[gracie1965 0]

Fallen once again thanks for the interest. I have been browsing and read many other questions and you seem to be the only one here who gives the bulk of the answers and in doing so you come off as extremely supercilious. Don't know if you know that and couldn't care less or if others have brought it up.

Very condescending in your tone. It is a shame cause you sound knowledgeable but I won't be back or recommending the site.

Have a wonderful life.