Imagine you've spent your whole life living in a family house. At some point, the property ends up split into co-ownership shares – for example, through inheritance, though not necessarily. It can easily happen that one or more co-owners sell their share to someone you’ve never met. This new co-owner may then demand that you start paying rent for “their part” of the property. Or worse – they may take you to court, demanding that you buy their share back, usually for a price they’ve set themselves.
This practice – so-called “flipping” of property shares – is on the rise. It's a way for some people and companies to pressure co-owners for financial gain.
So, what even is flipping?
The word 'flip' means 'to turn over'. That's exactly what it means – buy cheap and sell quickly for more.
Traditionally, this has meant buying a property, renovating it, and then selling it on for more. But there's a newer version of this trend that targets ownership shares, and it's often much more aggressive.
It's a pretty common scenario. A speculator might buy a minority co-ownership share in a house or plot of land. Then they pressure the other owners to buy them out, often under unfavourable conditions. And they might even demand rent for „their part“ of the property. If the other owners don't agree, the speculator sues to get the co-ownership dissolved. And if the other owners haven't been paying their share of the rent, they'll probably be demanding those payments too.
Speculation as a Business Model
These days, flipping is often marketed as a smart investment strategy. Communities, workshops, and online courses have sprung up around it. The practice often includes buying shares from elderly owners, who are paid a fraction of the real value simply because they don’t know the market price.
But things get tricky when investment turns into pressure. In this version, flipping uses complex legal rules, psychological tactics, and fear of expensive court cases. A lot of cases end in something called a default judgment, where the co-owner doesn't respond to the lawsuit, so the court assumes they agree with the claim. Others agree to settle, as they're afraid of losing and ending up paying thousands in legal costs.
The good news? It's worth fighting back.
Courts often reduce the amounts claimed by speculators (especially when they rely on biased expert reports). When co-owners stand their ground, speculators often back off and ask for less. Because these cases are complicated and often involve expert opinions, it's a good idea to get help from experienced lawyers. They'll help you get the best outcome and make sure you're treated fairly, especially when you're up against people taking advantage.
We used a publicly available AI translation tool to translate this article from Czech to English. Please contact us if any of the above information is unclear to you.
