Each
owner has a right to enter, possess, and use, just as a sole owner could,
but subject to other owners' rights.
Owners
rights are not exclusive rights; one cannot exclude other owners.
Any
income derived from the property must be distributed proportionately among
all owners.
Each
owner must abide by a reasonable care standard in favor of the other owners.
Any
repair costs and expenses incurred are shared proportionately.
An
owner who pays more than his share may have a right of contribution, that
is, reimbursement from the other owners.
Improvements
may or may not generate a right of contribution. (Unknown how this would
be handled in Oregon).
Right
of contribution for repair costs or expense may be enforced by lien. So,
if owner A does not get reimbursed by owner B, A has a lien on the property
for the amount of B's unpaid contribution
Concurrent
owners are not agents for the other owners. They cannot bind the others
to contracts.
Judgment
liens against individual concurrent owners only go to their proportionate
share.
Common
owners are all totally liable for injuries to third parties by reason
of a dangerous condition on the property. If a plaintiff takes judgment
and collects from one as a joint tortfeasor, that one has a right of contribution
from the other owners, and has a lien on the property for any unpaid amount..
Common
owners may partition the property voluntarily, or by court action.
To
accomplish a voluntary partition, all owners must execute an agreement
or deeds subdividing the property. No consideration is necessary.
A
court partition generally is an election of remedies between either a
judicial partition, or a forced sale of the property with division of
the sale proceeds among the concurrent owners.
Any
concurrent owner can bring a suit to partition, naming all other owners
as parties, and may also name as parties any others interested in title,
as for example, mortgagees, etc..
Words
and Phrases to Know:
right
of contribution, lien, voluntary partition, judicial partition.
