Finance1 min read

Can you sell your share in ancestral joint property?

By · Published by Everything Blog

In short

Legal experts stress that executing a formal partition of land is essential to legally record specific individual shares and head off disputes with surviving relatives. In cases involving indivisible residential structures, owners should file a formal partition suit or demand the monetary value of their designated portion. Buyers must also navigate lending hurdles because single co-owners rarely possess the primary title deed. To satisfy bank loan requirements, the party holding the master deed must sign a covenant of original title production.

Key points

  • Informal family arrangements leave real estate sales vulnerable to legal disputes over un…: Informal family arrangements leave real estate sales vulnerable to legal disputes over unobtained co-owner consent.
  • Formal legal partition must precede any land sale to clearly establish third-party rights…: Formal legal partition must precede any land sale to clearly establish third-party rights and possession.
  • Securing a covenant of original title production is necessary to satisfy bank mortgage in…: Securing a covenant of original title production is necessary to satisfy bank mortgage inspections when master deeds are unavailable.

Sources checked by our analysis pipeline: 1

People who own a share of ancestral property, held jointly by their family, such as land or a house, may face objections from other co-owners. Disputes can arise from several reasons, including third- party interference in family property or financial issues. These issues can also create problems for buyers since without peaceful possession, the property’s title remains only on paper leaving the buyer unable to enjoy it. So for the interest of both the seller and buyer, certain legal steps need to be taken before selling a share of joint ancestral property.

At the ET Wealth Expo 2026, practical problems and issues like these were discussed and answered by a panel of experts including Sadhav Mishra, Senior Partner, Head of Real Estate at SNG & Partner Advocates and Solicitors, Amit H Wadhwani, Partner, Real Estate, Khaitan & Co, Farid Karachiwala, Partner, J. Sagar Associates and Sagar Kadam, Partner, DSK Legal.

Amit H Wadhwani, Partner, Real Estate, Khaitan & Co said that in such a case, first check if there is any notional division of the share of the land which…

Finance