Legal Question in Wills and Trusts in Virginia

Re: No will, who has the right to property

I agree with Jon that your facts are unclear, especially about the order of death of your in-laws. Who died last, the mother or step-father? I am presuming that the mother was the last to die, as her daughter is the Administrator, and that the house is owned completely by her estate? If this is so, the Administrator can sell the house to you and your husband, use the proceeds to pay the mortgage and you would own the house free and clear, except for any new mortgage used to buy it. If you need more information, contact me directly.

Re: No will, who has the right to property

Despite your best attempts, I am not sure who is who, because (for example) I don't know who the sister-in-law is related to. Is she the daughter of the deceased in-laws?

If you simply paid the mortgage without doing anything else it would be a gift, and you would get nothing back.

You could offer to refinance the mortgage, by taking back a mortgage of your own. So you could replace the mortgage to the bank with a private mortgage from you. That way your money would be secured by a mortgage and a lien on the house.

However it would have to be signed by the Administrator (executor) to be enforceable.

Or you could offer to simply buy the house from the Administrator for a little more than the mortgage. Again the Administrator would have to sign the sales contract and deed.

It would be best if the three children also signed or gave a power of attorney to the Administrator.

Virginia is a littel squirrely on the issue of real estate in this respect. There is precedent that the real estate AUTOMATICALLY "vests" in the heirs at death, WITHOUT going through the Administrator. So there could be some debate about whether the Administrator has authority to sell or whether the three children have authority to sell. (There is also precedent to the contrary that in a case of financial lack, like this, the Administrator nevertheless has authority to sell real estate to raise funds for the estate. I think this would qualify, where the house is about to go into foreclosure.)

So ideally you would want EVERYONE to sign the deed of sale -- or a private mortgage.

If they are not cooperative, you might make this offer very clearly, in writing, so that as the hour of foreclosure approaches she might accept it.

You could also show up at the foreclosure and buy it from the bank for a little more than the mortgage. Obviously that is a worst case scenario if no one will cooperate. But then you could avoid losing the house.