Legal Question in Wills and Trusts in California
I am on the Deed of my house but not on the loan. My mother and father have since passed away but I have been on the deed of the home for several years before they passed. I am preparing to do a Re-modification and was told that I am REQUIRED to go through Probate. A realtor told me that since I am the legal owner of the home, I should not have to go through probate. I do not know whom to believe. Please let me know if being the legal owner of a home and I am considering a Re-modification, am I required to go through Probate?
2 Answers from Attorneys
Depends on what it says on the deed. If you hold title in joint tenancy with right of survivorship with your deceased parents, the property should not have to be probated. If as a tenant in common, most likely it will.
If the home is title in joint tenancy then you'll need an affidavit of joint tenant, together with some property tax documents, to remove your parents' names from the title of the home. Then you'll have clear title and you may sell, refinance, or perhaps modify your loan.
If the deed doesn't say "Dad, Mom and Child, as joint tenants" then it's a tenancy in common and probate will be required, as Ms. Cusack wrote.
I suggest you see a trusts and estates attorney in your community.
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