Legal Question in Wills and Trusts in California
When a relative dies with our last name and without a will and there is two sides of the family, which is family and half family 1) who is intitled to the property & assets left and a mortgage is due monthly. 2) Does it go by name sake or both sides of the family. One of the members has requested to be the Adminstrator of the probate. There are 8 total survivors 4 and 4 equally. Now with a monthly mortgage he is requesting that we let the room mate stay to pay only the amount of the loan not including any impounds for the year. He is hoping to get the house on the market to sell. But the property value is low. Should we dump it and get nothing or keep it as a family investment hoping the value goes up.
1 Answer from Attorneys
If a person passes away intestate, without a will, then the Probate Code has specific guidelines for how the person's property will be distributed. First it would go to a surviving spouse, if none, then to children (issue). If none, then to parents. If not alive, then to siblings. If not alive then to siblings children...it goes on further to aunts and uncles, cousins, etc. There is no actual listing for step-children, unless, of course, they were legally adopted.
You say there is already a Probate, so the first step has been accomplished. The next is to gather the assets and debts of the person and begin to prepare an accounting.
As far as whether to keep or dispose of a piece of real property, that is a decision that should be made between the heirs, but try to get advice from more than one real estate agent and possibly an investment broker, if possible (because the real estate agent may press for selling so they can be the listing agent). I don't know where the property is located, so I can not answer from any personal knowledge about the property value's potential flux, upwards or downwards.
I do suggest that, if you are an interested party, that you consult with your own estate plannin/probate attorney to make sure that your rights, if any, are being protected and looked after by the Administrator.
Beyond that, I'd need you to send me some additional information about the situation and who the 4 and 4 parties are to better assess the situation for you.
If you would like to discuss this matter further in a more private forum, please feel free to contact me directly at the email address provided by LawGuru or through our firm�s website located at PasadenaEstatePlanning.com
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