You have to bring a legal action to get a court order for the sale: you cannot unilaterally sell the home without providing notice to your co-owner, and even if you have legitimately tried and failed to find him, you still need a court to validate your efforts and give the go-ahead for the sale. Otherwise, without his signature or a court order, you will not be able to transfer the title. On the facts you describe, you should be able to get such an order. You can even likely do so an "emergent" (think "urgent" or "emergency") basis to get into court faster. But procedurally, this will be much more complex than, say, a small claims case. Do yourself a favor and hire an attorney to bring this for you. Good luck.