Legal Question in Elder Law in Illinois

Whoa! This seems complicated. And what taxes are you talking about?!

1. We need a better sense of chain of title: who owned the house 16 years ago (1995 or so)? Was it mom and dad?

2. When you came on title, was it the 3 of you, or just you and mom? What happened to dad?

3. When dad passed in 1999, what if any interest in the house passed through him -- and to whom? And was there any tax due then?

4. Today, if you and mom own the house and she passes away, are you the sole heir? Are you joint tenant, co-tenant or what?

5. If she is in assisted living and still has her name on the house, is there any chance she will wind up on public assistance? Because then it's not just a matter of tax on the house; instead her entire interest may be subject to levy by the government if public funds support her. And even if you got her to convey today, they can come back at you if she needs funds within 5 years.

Time to take the entire situation to a real estate/probate/tax attorney to sort through. And on that note, so it was $24K in 1962. What was it worth in 1995 when you came on title, in 1999 when dad passed, and today.

Sorry - no simple answers yet.

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