Detailed answer — How Florida law treats payments by one co‑owner in a partition

If you and another person inherited a home together and you paid property taxes and mortgage payments, you can often ask a Florida court in a partition action to account for those payments and to give you a credit or reimbursement. Partition actions in Florida are governed by the statutes on partition of real property and by equitable principles used by courts to divide costs, rents, profits, and necessary expenditures among co‑owners.

Key legal points (how courts typically analyze these claims):

• Partition actions: A cotenant (owner in common or joint owner, depending on how title is held) can ask the circuit court to partition the property either physically (partition in kind) or by sale and division of proceeds. See Florida Statutes, Chapter 64 (Partition). For the statute text, see: Fla. Stat. ch. 64 (Partition).
• Accounting for expenditures: When the court orders partition, it will generally determine each party’s share of ownership and will consider necessary expenditures (taxes, insurance, mortgage interest, repairs) and any rents or profits produced by the property. A co‑owner who paid more than his or her share may be entitled to an allowance or credit for necessary payments that benefited the whole estate.
• Taxes and insurance: Property taxes and insurance premiums are usually treated as necessary expenses for which co‑owners share responsibility. If you paid these, you can typically seek reimbursement (or a credit against proceeds) for the proportionate share paid on behalf of the co‑ownership.
• Mortgage payments and principal reductions: Payments that go to interest and necessary debt service are usually treated like other necessary expenses and are often recoverable in part. Payments that reduce mortgage principal are trickier: reducing mortgage principal increases the equity in the property for all owners. A Florida court may grant the payer an equitable credit for principal reductions, but the precise relief can vary with circumstances (how title and loan are held, whether the payer acted to prevent foreclosure, whether payments were made voluntarily, and whether the lender’s rights were affected).
• Consent and voluntariness: Courts are more likely to award reimbursement when payments were necessary to preserve the property (e.g., to avoid tax sale or foreclosure) or when the paying co‑owner sought contribution from the others. Voluntary improvements without a showing of benefit or notice to co‑owners may not be fully reimbursed.
• Lender and lien issues: If there is a mortgage, the lender’s rights take precedence. Paying the mortgage may protect all owners from foreclosure, but a court cannot override a mortgagee’s lien; rather, the court’s accounting allocates who bears the net cost after satisfying liens.

How this works in a partition proceeding

When you file (or are defending) a partition action, you should ask the court for a full accounting. The court can:

• require the parties to produce records of payments (tax bills, mortgage statements, cancelled checks, electronic payment records);
• credit the paying cotenant for a fair share of taxes, insurance, necessary repairs, and possibly mortgage interest or principal reductions; and
• deduct liens, costs of sale, and necessary expenses before dividing net proceeds in a sale partition.

Hypothetical example

Suppose two siblings inherit a Florida house as tenants in common. Sibling A pays three years of property taxes ($6,000 total) and mortgage payments totaling $18,000 (of which $5,000 went to principal and $13,000 was interest). Sibling B lived elsewhere and made no payments. If Sibling A files a partition action (or the parties litigate in an existing partition), a Florida court will typically require documentation of those payments and may:

• credit Sibling A for Sibling B’s half of the property taxes (roughly $3,000),
• credit some portion of the mortgage interest payments that were necessary to protect the property, and
• consider an equitable credit for principal reductions (the $5,000) because that principal reduction increased the equity owned by both siblings.

The court will subtract valid credits and liens from sale proceeds and divide the net amount by ownership shares. The exact result depends on proof, ownership percentages, and whether payments were necessary or approved.

Practical limits and defenses

• If a co‑owner made payments long ago and the other co‑owners did not receive notice or the payer cannot document those payments, recovery may be limited.
• If payments were purely voluntary improvements that primarily benefited the payer and not the co‑owners, courts may deny full reimbursement.
• If the mortgage was solely in the decedent’s name and the lender forecloses, payments after a foreclosure started may have limited effect unless they cured the default and were necessary to prevent loss.

What you should do now — steps to protect your right to recover payments

1. Gather documentation: mortgage statements, cancelled checks or bank records, online payment receipts, tax bills, insurance invoices, and any communications with co‑owners about payments.
2. Identify ownership form: determine if title is tenants in common, joint tenants with right of survivorship, or tenancy by the entirety (spouses). The type of ownership affects partition rights and remedies.
3. File or join the partition action: bring the accounting claim in the partition action so the court can resolve division and credits at the same time.
4. Ask the court for an accounting and specific credits: request that the court grant credits for taxes, insurance, and mortgage payments, and explain whether principal reductions should be credited as increasing your equity share.
5. Consider a protective motion: if a sale or potential foreclosure is pending, ask the court for temporary relief to prevent loss while accounting issues are resolved.
6. Talk to a Florida real property attorney: a lawyer can calculate likely recoverable amounts, draft pleadings, and negotiate settlements or pursue litigation in circuit court.

Helpful hints

• Keep detailed records from Day 1 — dates, amounts, payee names, and the purpose of each payment.
• If possible, inform co‑owners in writing before making large payments and request written agreement on contribution responsibilities.
• When you pay the mortgage, note whether your payment goes to interest, principal, taxes, or insurance — mortgage statements break this down.
• In partition suits, ask the court for an interim accounting and for an order that protects your interests until final distribution.
• Don’t assume mortgage payments automatically give you a lien against co‑owners’ interests — you need the court to recognize and enforce any equitable credit or lien where appropriate.
• Look for cost‑effective resolution: mediation or settlement can preserve equity and avoid sale costs.