It depends on how the house is owned. If your brother owns the house, then he has the right to continue to live there. If the property is owned jointly, then any one of the owners can petition the court for partition. In a partition, the court can order the sale of the property and the proceeds are divided among the owners. Because the property is all owned equally, unless other provisions were made, no one has the right to stay in the house if a partition is approved. The court may give one owner the chance to buy out the other owners, but if an agreement can’t be reached, the house will be sold. A partition lawsuit can be expensive for everyone, so it is usually better to try to come to an agreement before going to court. For more information on joint tenancy click here.
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