Legal Question in Wills and Trusts in Illinois

My mother passed away recently, and my step dad is making sure I get nothing from the estate. He was a cosigner on the mortgage and car before she died. My mother was the main borrower. The title of the house was NOT jointly owned. It was only in her name. I have just now received the Final Accounting after almost 2 years. He wants reimbursement fees taken out of my inheritance fund for the whole time he has lived there. He got to stay in the house and now he is trying to siphon it from the estate. They total nearly $9,000 in mortgage alone. He auctioned off the house to himself and bought the house. The entire time Probate was open, he lived in the house and drove the car around. Now that he has auctioned it off to himself at a lower value, he wants reimbursement fees for the entire time he has lived there for the house and the car. In my book, if you're a cosigner, you are obligated to pay if the borrower cannot. He also wants an Admin Fee. My question is this... Can someone who paid the mortgage while my mom was still alive be able to all of a sudden not have to pay the mortgage just because she dies? Can the executor of the estate completely blow the only heir of the estates compensation?


Asked on 5/31/13, 8:58 am

1 Answer from Attorneys
Virginia Prihoda Law Offices of Virginia Prihoda

You should talk to an attorney in your area to determine if you should object to the accounting and raise other issues. Be prepared to talk about how much value there really was in the properties: in a depressed real estate market, just maybe the numbers aren't that unreasonable, see if you can get some values before you talk to the attorney concerning how to calculate your share of the estate.

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Answered on 5/31/13, 9:49 am


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