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We are wrestling with this currently, and I'll just mention this: who is more likely to die or need a nursing home first? Under current Medicaid rules, a person has to be completely broke to qualify for nursing home assistance from Medicaid. It makes sense to me to have a house in the name of the one least likely to need assisted living first rather than joint ownership. I have had to witness this painful, life shattering process with both my parents and my older brother.
If the property is not in a Trust - Joint tenancy with right of survivorship - - if one owner dies, the deceased's interest in the property will pass to the surviving owner and avoids probate.
We are wrestling with this currently, and I'll just mention this: who is more likely to die or need a nursing home first? Under current Medicaid rules, a person has to be completely broke to qualify for nursing home assistance from Medicaid. It makes sense to me to have a house in the name of the one least likely to need assisted living first rather than joint ownership. I have had to witness this painful, life shattering process with both my parents and my older brother.
So, in this case, they were both in bad health and it was not clear at all, who might predecease the other.
I know Medicaid won't pay a thing, until you are dead broke with nothing left but your house.
As far as joint ownership, if a couple co-own a home, and one passes away, what happens to the half of the house that was owned by the deceased?
Does the surviving parent "inherit" half the house from the deceased, so that he/she can have their will re-done and leave the house to the beneficiary of their choice?
If the property is not in a Trust - Joint tenancy with right of survivorship - - if one owner dies, the deceased's interest in the property will pass to the surviving owner and avoids probate.
Law can vary from place to place.
My previous post crossed yours.
So, right of survivorship, most likely.
Here is the issue.
The couple had two kids and one was adopted. The biological child never got married and currently lives in his father's house. His father is in a care center and his mother pre-deceased his father when she passed away in 2010.
The adopted child is married and they have their own home or apartment.
"After" the mother died, the adopted son and biological son became more distant than they were, according to a relative of mine. They did not elaborate, but used the word "sue."
So, there is some scenario, which causes one child to sue the other.
As I try to think of why one child would sue their sibling, I can not come up with a long list of reasons.
In this case it may be over the parent's house. If it is not the house, then I need assistance in coming up with a list of reasons why a brother would sue a brother, "after" their Mother passed away, and their father is living and is mentally fine, he just can not walk.
Yes, I know, in the case of "action," the best legal advice is to talk to a lawyer.
But, in the real world, with 4 people dying every minute in the USA, there are people who have experienced these things, and it does not take a lawyer to share experiences.
A join willcan actaully cover everythign ;see a lawyer. In community property states tho you reallty can't separate wealth that is accumulated during marriage until divorce or death.
My previous post crossed yours.
So, right of survivorship, most likely.
Here is the issue.
The couple had two kids and one was adopted. The biological child never got married and currently lives in his father's house. His father is in a care center and his mother pre-deceased his father when she passed away in 2010.
The adopted child is married and they have their own home or apartment.
"After" the mother died, the adopted son and biological son became more distant than they were, according to a relative of mine. They did not elaborate, but used the word "sue."
So, there is some scenario, which causes one child to sue the other.
As I try to think of why one child would sue their sibling, I can not come up with a long list of reasons.
In this case it may be over the parent's house. If it is not the house, then I need assistance in coming up with a list of reasons why a brother would sue a brother, "after" their Mother passed away, and their father is living and is mentally fine, he just can not walk.
Yes, I know, in the case of "action," the best legal advice is to talk to a lawyer.
But, in the real world, with 4 people dying every minute in the USA, there are people who have experienced these things, and it does not take a lawyer to share experiences.
It's a sad fact but many siblings sue after their parents are gone.
Is the house in the father's name only? He needs to see a lawyer, make a new will and make all his wishes very clear. If their is a problem with the siblings then the estate usually goes through probate which wastes time and money for the kids. Too bad they don't realize the only ones who make out are the attorneys.
If there is no will in SC..here is the south Carolina intestacy laws:
S.C. Code of Laws Title 62 Disclaime The South Carolina Legislative Council Is Offering Access To The Unannotated South Carolina Code Of - www.scstatehouse.gov-LPITS (http://www.scstatehouse.gov/code/t62c002.htm - broken link)
If the property is placed in a trust it doesn't have to go through probate. He really needs to see an estate planner to finalize everything before the kids destroy his life savings.
So, in this case, they were both in bad health and it was not clear at all, who might predecease the other.
I know Medicaid won't pay a thing, until you are dead broke with nothing left but your house.
As far as joint ownership, if a couple co-own a home, and one passes away, what happens to the half of the house that was owned by the deceased?
Does the surviving parent "inherit" half the house from the deceased, so that he/she can have their will re-done and leave the house to the beneficiary of their choice?
The Medicaid thing is not necessarily true -- laws vary from state to state and sometime it makes perfect sense to hire an elder law attorney. This is one of those times....
I know in my mother's case she inherited the house after Daddy died -- because the house was owned by Mom and Dad joint tenancy with rights of survivorship -- however -- she never filed a change of name or ownership. So when she died 30 some years later, we found the house was still in Daddy and Mom's name, so we had to find his death cert, too.
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