Legal Question in Real Estate Law in California

Re: How to purchase property when owners are demented and have no family to clai

Someone will need to petition the court for an order to sell the house and hold proceeds in trust for the couple.

Re: How to purchase property when owners are demented and have no family to clai

The hospital may be correct, but the determination of comptency for legal purposes should be made by a judge after hearing medical testimony. (Obviously, when you say "the hospital," you must mean some staff person or committee of the hospital.)

I'm not sure I agree that a trust is the right answer here. I think the situation probably calls for a conservatorship. There should be a petition for appointment of a conservator. A large section of the Probate Code is devoted to conservatorships. A discussion of how they are set up and administered is beyond the scope of a LawGuru response.

Re: How to purchase property when owners are demented and have no family to clai

Someone needs to petition the court for the creation of a conservatorship. The petitioner should be a family member but could also be a neighbor, the public guardian or even a private professional conservator. You may want to refer the matter to adult protective services who can get the ball rolling. Once a conservator has been appointed, this person can have the power, under court jurisdiction, to sell their real property (if this is appropriate).

Re: How to purchase property when owners are demented and have no family to clai

have a conservator appointed.