Legal Question in Real Estate Law in California
Thinking about the future
Before my father died he recorded a deed with him and myself as joint tenants. My mother called the county clerk and told them that he had died. The house was conveyed into my name for 5 years. Then my mother went down to the county clerks office and had a new deed made out into her name only. All this happened without my knowledge or consent. Recently she made out a new deed with both of us as joint tenants. She did this with my brother-in-law without telling me until it was recorded with the county clerks office. She may again have my brother-in-law do something else without my knowledge. I have supported my mother from the time of my fathers death. It was 5 years before she qualified for social security. Now as she is over 80 I will be taking care of her in her old age. Before I spend my retirement money on her care I would like advice on how I should handle this without being left with nothing in my old age as my mother has been less than straight forward with me. My brother and sisters would like to take the house away from me.
2 Answers from Attorneys
Re: Thinking about the future
Since you haven't been able to sort out, understand, or effectively resolve what has been happening, it would make sense for you to hire an attorney to do so. Questions and disputes over title and inheritance are going to lead to a court filing sooner or later. Feel free to contact me if serious about dealing with this.
Re: Thinking about the future
OK, let's roll back the clock to the time your mother and father first acquired the house in question. How did they take title? Probably as community property, but other ways of holding title are sometimes used by married couples, including joint tenancy. It's also possible, but not very likely, that the house was your father's separate property from the start. Even if it were his separate property initially, however, it may have become partially community property if, for example, community earnings were used to pay a mortgage or make improvements.
In any event, it's very, very likely that by the time your father wrote and recorded that deed to you, five years before his death, he was NOT the sole owner of the house, and therefore could not have made you a joint tenant in the entire house. Indeed, if the house were community property, he could not give you ANY ownership interest in the house, because a deed selling an interest in community property must be signed by BOTH spouses (with a few exceptions) in order to be valid.
Without knowing how title was held at the very outset of this story, it is IMPOSSIBLE to say who owns how much of the house. Suffice it to say that you need to have a real estate lawyer in your county (or whatever county the house is in) go over the official records. You MAY have a partial ownership via your father's deed to you...but he could not have given you a greater interest than what was his to give.
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