The property shall be sold at public auction or private sale as the court determines will be more beneficial to the parties. For the purpose of making this determination, the court may refer the matter to the referee and take into account the referee's report.
§ 873.520.Property Sold At Public Auction Or Private Sale As Determined By Court
Title 10.5. Partition of Real and Personal Property · Chapter 6. Sale of the Property · Article 1. Manner of Sale · Enacted 1976 · no amendments on record · Last verified July 28, 2026
In one sentenceSection 873.520 lets the court decide whether the property should be sold at public auction or private sale, choosing whichever method it finds more beneficial to the parties, and allows the court to refer that question to the referee and consider the referee's report before deciding.
Full Text of § 873.520
Plain-English Summary
This section sets up the basic choice at the heart of a partition sale. The property is sold at public auction or private sale, whichever the court determines will be more beneficial to the parties.
Each method has its own character. A public auction offers competitive bidding in an open, transparent process; a private sale relies on negotiated offers, which can sometimes better suit a unique or specialized property. The statute doesn't prefer one over the other — it leaves the choice to the court's judgment about what serves the parties on the facts of the case.
To help make that judgment, the court may refer the question to the referee and take the referee's report into account. Section 873.530 adds one more option: part of the property can be sold at public auction and part at private sale, when a mixed approach better serves the parties.
Frequently Asked Questions
Who decides whether the property is sold at auction or privately?
The court, choosing whichever method it finds more beneficial to the parties.
Does the referee have any say in that choice?
The court may refer the question to the referee and take the referee's report into account before deciding.
Can part of the property be sold one way and part another?
Yes, § 873.530 allows a mixed approach when that appears more beneficial to the parties.
Amendment History
Added by Stats. 1976, Ch. 73.
Source & verification. Section text is reproduced verbatim from
the Deering's California Codes Annotated / vLex. Enacted by the California Legislature.
Last verified July 28, 2026.
· Official source
Also known as: public auction or private sale partition california