(a) Unless the interests and rights of the parties will be materially prejudiced thereby, the court shall order that distinct lots or parcels of real property be sold separately.
§ 873.620.Distinct Lots Or Parcels Sold Separately; Real and Personal Property Sold As Unit
Title 10.5. Partition of Real and Personal Property · Chapter 6. Sale of the Property · Article 2. Sales Procedures · Enacted 1976 · no amendments on record · Last verified July 28, 2026
In one sentenceSection 873.620 requires the court to order distinct lots or parcels of real property sold separately unless doing so would materially prejudice the parties' interests, while also allowing the court to order real and personal property sold together as a single unit.
Full Text of § 873.620
(b) The court may order that the real and personal property or any portion thereof be sold as a unit.
Plain-English Summary
This section carries the division chapter's preference for existing boundaries over into the sale chapter. Unless the interests and rights of the parties would be materially prejudiced by doing so, the court must order that distinct lots or parcels of real property be sold separately, echoing § 873.240's similar preference for dividing along existing lot lines.
Subdivision (b) adds flexibility in the other direction: the court may order that the real and personal property, or any portion of it, be sold as a single unit. That option matters where personal property, like equipment or fixtures, is closely tied to the real property's value or use.
Both rules leave the ultimate judgment to the court, weighing whether separate sales or a unit sale better serves the parties on the particular facts.
Frequently Asked Questions
Must distinct parcels of real property be sold separately?
Yes, unless doing so would materially prejudice the parties' interests.
Can real and personal property be sold together?
Yes, the court may order them sold as a single unit.
Why would the court order a unit sale instead of separate sales?
When keeping the real and personal property together better serves the parties, a judgment the statute leaves to the court on the facts of the case.
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: separate parcel sale partition california