When Family Members Disagree About Selling a Property

Under NSW law, property can be owned jointly in two ways:

Joint Tenancy: Where co-owners each hold an equal, undivided share of the whole property. On the death of one joint tenant, their share automatically passes to the surviving joint tenant(s) by right of survivorship — it does not form part of the deceased's estate.

Tenancy in Common: Where co-owners each hold a specified percentage share (e.g., 50/50, 60/40) that they can individually sell or bequeath. The shares do not automatically pass to surviving co-owners on death.

Disputes arise most commonly in tenancy in common arrangements, where one owner wants to sell and another does not. In this scenario, the dissenting owner cannot legally prevent the other from forcing a sale, but they can make the process difficult.

The legal remedy available to a co-owner who wants to sell and is being blocked by the other is to apply to the NSW Supreme Court (or in lower-value cases, the NSW Land and Environment Court) for an order of statutory sale under the Conveyancing Act 1919 (NSW).

A court order for statutory sale overrides the dissenting co-owner's objection and requires the property to be sold, with proceeds distributed according to ownership percentages.

This is a last resort and an expensive one. Legal costs for a contested statutory sale application can run to $30,000 to $80,000 or more. Most experienced property solicitors will first attempt negotiation or mediation before pursuing court action.

When a deceased person leaves a property to multiple beneficiaries — perhaps several adult children — conflicts about the property's disposition are common:

Disagreements about timing: One beneficiary may want to sell immediately (for financial reasons); another may resist selling while they are still grieving.

Disagreements about price: Beneficiaries with different levels of financial sophistication or different motivations (one needs cash now; another is holding out for a higher price) may disagree on what constitutes an acceptable offer.

Disagreements about method: One beneficiary may want a public auction; another may prefer a quiet private sale.

Disagreements about the estate generally: In estates where there is pre-existing family conflict, the property decision becomes a proxy battle for broader disputes.

The executor's legal obligations are clear: they have a fiduciary duty to the estate (and all beneficiaries collectively) to maximize the net estate value and distribute it fairly and promptly.

This means the executor must not allow any individual beneficiary's preference to cause financial harm to the estate — for example, by delaying a sale past the 2-year CGT exemption window, or by refusing a competitive offer in order to punish a co-beneficiary.

If beneficiaries believe the executor is breaching their fiduciary duty, they can apply to the Supreme Court to have the executor removed and replaced. This is a serious step that should only be taken with proper legal advice.

Before pursuing court action — which is expensive, time-consuming, and potentially permanently damaging to family relationships — several alternative resolution strategies are worth exploring:

Independent Valuation as Common Ground: One of the most effective ways to resolve pricing disagreements between family members is to commission a joint, independent valuation by a registered valuer. When all parties agree to be bound by the registered valuer's assessed market value, the pricing argument is resolved objectively. The registered valuer carries no conflict of interest and has professional liability for their assessment.

Mediation: The NSW Law Society and many private legal mediation services offer property dispute mediation. A trained mediator helps all parties articulate their interests, understand each other's perspectives, and work toward a mutually acceptable agreement — without the formality and cost of court. Many complex family property disputes that have stalled for months resolve within a single mediation session.

Family Lawyers: For disputes involving former partners or domestic disputes, engaging a family law solicitor (rather than just a property conveyancer) provides the breadth of legal expertise needed to address both the property and the interpersonal dimensions of the dispute.

Structured Buy-Out: Where one beneficiary or co-owner wants to retain the property and others want to sell, a structured buy-out — where the retaining party purchases the other shares at independent valuation — can resolve the dispute without selling to an external buyer.

In many family property disputes, the method of sale is itself a source of conflict. One party wants a public auction; another wants a private treaty; a third has a "friend" who wants to buy it. An agent is appointed and immediately becomes embroiled in the family politics.

A private off-market sale to a professional direct buyer — where the price is established by reference to independent market data rather than the outcome of an auction — can remove several of these conflict points:

Objective pricing: Direct buyers offer prices based on comparable sales data, which all parties can independently verify. There is no auction theatre, no agent appraisal to argue about, and no bidding competition to second-guess.

Neutral party: A professional direct buyer has no personal stake in the family dynamics. They are not an agent trying to win a listing, not a family friend with complicated loyalties, and not a developer with an agenda. They are simply a buyer making a market-based offer.

Speed: Resolving the sale quickly — through a fast direct transaction — limits the ongoing exposure of all family members to the stress and cost of a protracted property dispute.

Discretion: A private transaction does not become a matter of neighbourhood or social network discussion. The family's circumstances remain private.

Selling a family home, especially a deceased estate or late parent's home, carries significant emotional weight. Executors often struggle with the physical task of decluttering family belongings and coordinating with multiple beneficiaries who may have conflicting expectations.

To manage this transition neutrally, executors should rely on API valuations and structured off-market sales. Bypassing public open homes avoids the stress of strangers inspecting the home and keeps negotiations professional.

Direct treaty sales with cash-ready buyers like ROAME Australia ensure the property is liquidated quietly and proceeds are distributed to beneficiaries, avoiding family conflict.