Legal Question in Real Estate Law in Pennsylvania
Can Mother-in-law put a lien on my home?
I purchased my home 9 years ago. I married 4 years ago. The house is in my name only although we now have a mortgage in my and my husbands name. My mother-in-law paid to have a large addition put on the back of our home and now lives with us. We do not use the addition, it is for her personal use. Things are going down
hill fast and she is threatening to put a lien on the house. There was never anything put in writing regarding the addition or anything else. Can she put a lien on the house and if I decide to sell does she have any claim to any profits?
1 Answer from Attorneys
Re: Can Mother-in-law put a lien on my home?
You asked about allocation of the sale of a home owned in only one name.
I'm not going to make any assumptions. Unless there was some agreement in writing regarding the addition your mother-in-law probably has no enforceable claim to place a lien on the home. She can try but you can fight it.
If there were a sale of the home the first to be paid will always be the mortgage holder, then the deedholder takes the remainder. Both you husband and mother-in-law could make claims against the equity or profits. A sympathetic court may be persuaded to award the husband a portion of the equity value based on his contributions. Similarly with the MinL, a sympathetic court could award her an award somehow based on the increased value due to the addition (or you could argue that it decreased value).
No matter what, the situation will not be pleasant so you should contact a family law attorney to work out a solution as soon as possible.
Now, just because I know you haven't heard it yet today, what the hell were you thinking?
Regards,
Roger
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