Short answer. The court may assign the whole property to one party willing to take it, provided that party pays the others an equitable amount set by the commissioners — unless another interested party instead asks for a public sale, in which case the court orders the commissioners to sell it.
What the law says
When it is made to appear to the commissioners that the real estate, or a portion thereof, cannot be divided without prejudice to the interests of the parties, the court may order it assigned to one of the parties willing to take the same, provided he pays to the other parties such amounts as the commissioners deem equitable, unless one of the interested parties asks that the property be sold instead of being so assigned, in which case the court shall order the commissioners to sell the real estate at public sale under such conditions and within such time as the court may determine.
Rule 69, Section 5 — Assignment or sale of real estate by commissioners. Read the full provision →
When physical division is not feasible
Sometimes real estate simply cannot be divided into separate portions without prejudicing the interests of the co-owners — splitting it would destroy its value or usefulness, for instance a single building lot too small to yield usable parcels for each owner. When that is made to appear to the commissioners, the rule provides an alternative to forced physical division rather than leaving the case at a dead end. The commissioners are the ones who make this determination and report it to the court, not the parties themselves, and the court reviews that finding before choosing a next step.
Assigning the whole to one willing co-owner
The court may order the entire property assigned to one of the parties who is willing to take it, on the condition that this party pays the other co-owners such amounts as the commissioners deem equitable — effectively a buyout of the other owners' interests rather than a physical split. The commissioners set the buyout figure, not the parties themselves, keeping the valuation independent of whatever the taking party might prefer to pay or the others might demand for their respective shares in the property.
Sale as the fallback if someone objects
That assignment option is not automatic if any interested party objects to it. If one of them instead asks that the property be sold rather than assigned to a single co-owner, the court must order the commissioners to sell the real estate at public sale, under conditions and within a time the court determines. A public sale converts the co-owners' interests into cash, divided among them instead of into land, which avoids forcing an unwilling co-owner to accept a buyout price they consider unfair or to remain tied to a co-owner they no longer wish to share the property with.
Related provisions
- Rule 69, Section 5 — Assignment or sale of real estate by commissioners
- Rule 69, Section 4 — Oath and duties of commissioners
- Rule 69, Section 6 — Report of commissioners; proceedings not binding until confirmed