Legal Question in Wills and Trusts in California

It depends on how he structures things. He could put it in a trust with her as the beneficiary until she dies and then distribution to you, or he could do it by will that grants her a life estate with a remainder to you. Each option has advantages and disadvantages for each of you. He really should spend some time with a good estate planning attorney and go over the options and come up with a plan that best suits your needs, hers, and his wishes.

I agree with Mr. McCormick's general advice, and as far as your specific question goes, if your father died without doing anything, you would probably inherit the house, which would make you responsible for it in terms of paying the property taxes, keeping it insured, handling the mortgage payments (if any), and dealing with the girl friend. On the other hand, unless you, and maybe the three of you acting together, deal with this in a businesslike and familial way, any number of odd results might arise after his death; for example, he could will it to her outright, he might make the two of you co-heirs, etc. etc. Planning with a professional has the potential to save a lot of taxes, too, both property taxes and IRS capital-gains taxes.