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Long story short, my aunt inherited my grandparents condo, let it go into disrepair, filed for chapter 13, and I guess the condo is in the state trustees name. She passed in July and Im the next of kin. She owed 12000 in back fees which I would have to pay to get ownership. She has about 80,000 in unpaid debt, If I were to gain ownership would this effect me at all? Im not sure if this is worth pursuing.
Sorry about your aunt's passing. And the ensuing issues you have to deal with.
Chapter 13 is where things are still in the owner's name but paid off in a more affordable way...pennies on the dollar, principal but no interest, etc.
So your aunt probably still owned the condo. Any debts would be paid off from her estate until anything passes to those who inherit, namely you.
You are not responsible for your aunt's debts unless your name was on them...a joint credit card, a joint home title. Any debts your aunt incurred by herself, she pays them off before or after death with whatever there is.
So someone would take charge of paying off your aunt's debts from her estate. An executer or executrix, if she appointed anyone before passing. Or her attorney. Or whoever had power of attoney. Or the court can appoint one.
It can be very confusing. And laws can vary. Just when you think it has been closed...another thing comes up.
Sorry about your aunt's passing. And the ensuing issues you have to deal with.
Chapter 13 is where things are still in the owner's name but paid off in a more affordable way...pennies on the dollar, principal but no interest, etc.
So your aunt probably still owned the condo. Any debts would be paid off from her estate until anything passes to those who inherit, namely you.
You are not responsible for your aunt's debts unless your name was on them...a joint credit card, a joint home title. Any debts your aunt incurred by herself, she pays them off before or after death with whatever there is.
So someone would take charge of paying off your aunt's debts from her estate. An executer or executrix, if she appointed anyone before passing. Or her attorney. Or whoever had power of attoney. Or the court can appoint one.
It can be very confusing. And laws can vary. Just when you think it has been closed...another thing comes up.
So...yes, an attorney is needed.
See the thing is the condo is not sellable right now in its current condition, the only people that have a lien on it is the condo complex, and its in foreclosure right this second. Im worried if I emptied my bank account to get this place in my name and fix it up that her creditors would come after any profit I make.
The other condos are going for about 100k in this unit, and I NEED this money badly, and it really tears me up that all my grandfathers hard work is being crapped away, and I don't want to sound selfish, but I feel entitled to this, Im his only grandchild and I know he would be quite angry that his home was repossessed by the condo association.
OP- You are not understanding what posters are trying to explain to you. Your aunt's estate has $ 80,000 in debt. The condo, which is part of the estate, has a $ 12,000 lien or basically another $ 12,000 in debt. So the total debt equals $92,000 to start.
You are not responsible for paying any of it. However, your aunt's estate is. Only after all the debt is paid off, is there anything for you.
Please speak to an attorney as soon as possible for legal advice on how to work through the bankruptcy and the foreclosure . Only an attorney will be able to help you figure out how bankruptcy might affect that debt and the pending foreclosure.
Basically, you have no right to your aunt's stuff till all her debts are paid for by HER. And those she owed will take care of this. Don't get involved in some muddle of fixing up your aunt's debt payment (note "your aunt's debt" not yours) and eventually paperwork is finally done behind the scenes and there's a bolt on the door and you finally understand you were wasting your money.
You can't get the condo in your name until the debt is paid off. You may not be able to get it out of foreclosure now. I would hope the $12,000 is not just for condo fees (the association would have let it go very far if that's the case) , but is actually probably payment on a mortgage she got against the condo after she inherited it. And the reason the condo is being foreclosed on is that your aunt had not paid on the mortgage for a while.
The condo association is probably only one of the creditors among those who were receiving a portion of your aunt's monthly payment to a trustee (pennies on the dollar of what she owed) who then portioned the money out to all those she owed. She would have listed those she owed when she filed Chapter 13. She needed an attorney to go into Chapter 13 bankruptcy so there is one somewhere who dealt with her throught this.
This did not just occur mysteriously. Going into bankruptcy is a choice (albeit sad) and involves effort and action and work to gather info to give an attorney.
The trustee will find out when there's no payment, if not sooner.
Thank you all for the replies. It looks like my grandfathers life work is just gonna go strait down the toilet. Sad really, never put any faith in an alcoholic family member.
If it's any consolation to you, NHBorn, this scenario, or a variation thereof, plays out every day. Learn from it and move on. It's the healthiest thing you can do.
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