Legal Question in Real Estate Law in Illinois

Refinance

My husband and I were married in 1992. We bought a house in 1998, and refinanced in 2003. My husband passed away suddenly in 2004 at age 33. We did not have mortgage insurance. The house is in his name, not mine because at the time he had better credit.

I have been paying the mortgage solely since he passed away, and my FICO score is now 787.

My question is can I legally refinance this house? We refinanced for $210,000 and I owe about $193,000 on it. We have two sons, ages 16 and 8, and i need to do some remodling on this house. It has recently appraised for $455,000.

What do I have to do to own this house? What if I want to sell it? I can prove I've made all payments and over a hundred thousand dollars in improvements since he passed away. Please advise as to what I should do. There was no probate because we/he had no Wills and only a couple of thousand dollars in the bank. There was nothing to probate.


Asked on 6/22/08, 11:22 am

2 Answers from Attorneys
George Zuganelis Zuganelis & Zuganelis, Attorneys at Law, P.C.

Re: Refinance

Yes, you had something to probate. The house. You can still file a probate and have the house put into your name. My firm can also help you with the refinancing of the house once it's in your name. Please see www.homeloanlawyers.com. Get a lawyer to help you do this. If you need more information, please call me.

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Answered on 6/22/08, 12:09 pm
David Shestokas Shestokas, & Associates

Re: Refinance

While there was in fact something to probate, the status of the house depends upon the deed. Just because your husband borrowed the money does not necessarily mean it was not written with you as a joint tenant. The first order of business is to look at the deed. If you have made contact with a bank for refinancing then they will be ordering a title as part of that process. The title will tell the bank the legal status of the home. You may need to go to court to have a deed issued in your name, but based on your representations the house is surely yours. At any rate, shop for your financing, and the lender, when they investigate for the loan will assist in giving you direction or a referral to real estate lawyers they are comfortable with, which is important as they are lending you the money.

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Answered on 6/22/08, 3:08 pm


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