Inherited Property and Partition Disputes in San Antonio

Your mother left the house to you and your two brothers in equal thirds. One brother has lived in it since the funeral, pays no rent, and has stopped returning calls. You want your third in cash. Texas law gives you a way to get it, and the options are usually better than people expect.

When One Heir Lives in the House

This is the most common inherited-house dispute we see in San Antonio. One heir lives in the house and controls it, even though three people own it. The other two own an interest that produces no income and that few buyers would pay for.

The heir living there often does not see himself as the problem. He may be the one who stayed and paid the mortgage and taxes since the funeral, and he believes that should count for something. Sometimes it does. The other siblings see a free house and a brother who benefits from delay. Both views can be partly right.

The court will not decide who was the better child. It decides what the property is worth and what each owner should be credited or charged for since the death.

What Counts as Heirs’ Property

Texas has a general partition statute and a separate chapter for property passed down through a family. Chapter 23A of the Property Code is the Texas Uniform Partition of Heirs’ Property Act. Section 23A.002 defines heirs’ property. Section 23A.006 sets out how the court determines value, and Section 23A.007 gives the other co-owners the right to buy out a co-owner who asks for a sale.

In practice, the sibling who wants out can be paid for his share while the sibling who wants to stay keeps the house, usually on better terms than a forced sale would give either of them.

Tex. Prop. Code 23.001, 23.002; 23A.002, 23A.006, 23A.007 (Texas Uniform Partition of Heirs’ Property Act).

How These Cases Proceed

1. Filing suit. Partition runs on Property Code 23.001 and 23.002. Filing does not have to end family relationships. In most of these cases, a lawsuit is the only way to create a deadline, and deadlines are what produce offers.
2. Deciding whether one case is enough. Gov’t Code 25.0173(a) gives all three Bexar statutory probate courts jurisdiction to decide the issue of title to real or personal property. If the estate is already open in a Bexar probate court, the judge deciding who the heirs are can also decide title. Courts in many Texas counties cannot.
3. The court decides whether Chapter 23A applies and sets a value. If the property qualifies as heirs’ property, the case focuses on price instead of a sale, and no buyout can happen until value is set. Expect the valuation to be contested.
4. The co-owners who want to keep the property elect to buy. Under 23A.007, this is the step that can keep the property in the family. A brother who can pay for his siblings’ shares keeps the house.
5. Mediation. Under the Bexar County probate courts’ local rules approved September 25, 2026, Rule 6.2(c) lets the parties agree on a mediator and has the court appoint one from its approved list if they cannot. Rule 6.2(d) splits the cost equally unless the court orders otherwise, and the mediator’s fee may be taxed as a cost of court.
6. If no one buys, the court considers dividing the property or selling it. Dividing the land works when the land can reasonably be divided. A single house on a city lot usually cannot be, which is why the buyout is worth pursuing first.
7. Clearing title. The case ends when the title records reflect the result, so whoever keeps the property can sell, borrow against, or insure it.

Ongoing Costs During the Case

A partition case often takes more than a year, and the bills on the house keep coming.

• The mortgage keeps coming due, and a default hurts every owner.
• Property taxes are a lien on the property itself, regardless of which heir lives there.
• Insurance on a house still in a deceased person’s name is a common problem, and an uninsured loss reduces the value of the asset everyone is fighting over.
• Repairs put off during the case usually cost more later, and every owner shares that cost.
• Keep receipts. At the end of the case, the court will look at who paid the mortgage, taxes, insurance, and repairs, and receipts carry more weight than memory.

A Forced Sale Usually Brings the Lowest Price

A forced sale can seem like the quickest way out, but property sold out of a dispute usually goes to investors who expect a discount.

Then subtract what it cost to get there: another year of the note and the taxes, a valuation fight, two sets of lawyers, and a mediator’s fee that Rule 6.2(d) may tax as a cost of court. By the time a contested sale closes and the proceeds split three ways, the sibling who wanted cash often ends up with less than a buyout would have paid a year earlier, and the sibling who wanted the house loses it.

The buyout should usually be the first option, not the last.

What We Don’t Handle

If all you need is paperwork to clear a parent’s name off a deed and everyone agrees, another firm is a better fit. We do not handle affidavits of heirship, small estate affidavits, muniment of title, or uncontested transfers, Another firm can handle that work for less. Call us when the owners disagree and someone needs to be bought out or sued.