Michigan. Items were taken by the police, am I entitled to them or do I have to file a probate claim?
answered on Apr 10, 2023
I agree with Mr Harris, but I'm compelled to ask -- the POLICE? It is VERY unusual for the police to become involved in such things unless 1) there was violence and/or 2) the items removed were somehow contraband.
YOU ABSOLUTELY NEED to get local legal advice and probably... View More 
We have maintained the HOA property adjacent to us for over 30 yrs. By-laws don't mention the sale/purchase of hoa property but amendments must pass by 2/3 vote. If a vote was passed to allow purchase, WHAT ARE THE NEXT STEPS FOR US TO PURCHASE THE PROPERTY. The board has asked us to find... View More
answered on Mar 29, 2023
Want to buy it as in 'and remove it from the HoA'?
Want to buy it and keep it IN the HoA?
Want to fraudulently report it as 'not a sale' so the HoA doesn't have to pay capital gains tax?
While the last one is 'shady and likely to end you up in... View More
I have guardianship of my grandson and there isn't a father listed on his birth certificate but there is on the guardianship paper work. Will they go after this person for child support or will they try to establish paternity first?
This is a follow up question to a question I asked... View More
answered on Mar 23, 2023
If the government is going to be on the hook you bet your booty the government is going to be trying to get the father to pay support.
To do that they will need to prove paternity in some way. (You don’t have to pay to support some stranger’s kids after all and momma’s baby,... View More
Their mother had put their names on the title many years ago. She controlled the house, paid all the expenses, taxes, insurance, etc. She would never have been forced out of the house by her children. When she died, the house was left to her son and daughter, and it was sold two months later.... View More
answered on Mar 17, 2023
That depends on HOW 'their names were on it'. Did your mother in law have a lady-bird deed prepared or did she do a simple quit claim deed to 'avoid probate'? (SO many bad decisions are made to 'avoid probate'!)
Take all the documents to a local real estate... View More
He is not mentally able to handle her estate, nor is his brother (who is also homeless).
answered on Mar 15, 2023
I'm sorry to hear of your loss.
Mr Harris is correct, but it seems like you're trying to get a lawyer to undergo representation via the website. That isn't how this works.
You need to work with the lawyer to RETAIN services, and that involves some phone calls and... View More
I have an office suite for my company that has become increasingly unlivable, piles of dead bugs, bug feces, flying ant infestation, ant traps everywhere full of dead ants, extremely cold temperatures (59 f) on occasion, and office landlord does not fix the problem. Is there a way out of my... View More
answered on Mar 14, 2023
Without reading your lease it is hard to say.
RESIDENTIAL leases have an implied warranty of habitability, but that is not automatically the case with commercial leases. (Indeed, many say ‘as is’ and if that’s not good enough, tough. )
Get your lease to a local licensed... View More
My late parents made me trustee and requested (in writing) that my siblings and I hold onto their farmland for 5 years before selling. But I saw a question on the IRS 1041 this year asking whether the trust has been in existence for 2 years or longer (and to justify why). Is there a federal or... View More
answered on Mar 9, 2023
I absolutely agree with Mr Harris.
And NEITHER complex estate settlement (as the mere existence of a Trust implies) nor tax issues are fertile "DIY" ground.
If there is a car and nothing else or some SIMPLE probate, maybe, but even then, failing to publish appropriately... View More
I believe there’s a law in Michigan that the condo association has the post that there is lad, our mold in the buildings in the common area
answered on Mar 4, 2023
I believe you’re confusing rental property and condos. They are NOT the same thing, and the rules are distinct.
While there are FEDERAL rules about the disclosure of *LEAD* in both rentals and sales, there are no federal or state rules in Michigan about mold. For either condos or rental... View More
How do we transfer ownership to my mom, then her children in the future and avoid probate?
answered on Mar 1, 2023
IF the facts are correct and complete (HOW was your brother's name 'on the deed'? With full rights of survivorship? Some other way? You need to run this by a licensed attorney!) your BROTHER needs to transfer the house to your mother, and either at the same time or afterward she... View More
4 children all in agreement no other assets
answered on Feb 21, 2023
If the total value of all vehicles owned by the deceased does not exceed $60,000 and that the estate of the deceased is not being probated and will NOT be probated then there is an ‘expedited’ process involving only the Secretary of State and not the Probate Court.
But I would STRONGLY... View More
My deceased brother had no spouse, children, or living parents and passed w/o a will. 5 of 6 siblings are trying to start Probate and 1 sibling is refusing to cooperate in this process, and won't sign the document to allow for assignment of PR to my sister. What do we do to start Probate?
answered on Feb 18, 2023
Ms Archie is correct, but if there is disagreement, it makes a LOT of sense to discuss this with a probate attorney FIRST. Your sibling may well be correct that probate is not necessary.
Explain the facts and why you think probate is needed (it probably is, but it may not be!) and have... View More
My home went into foreclosure in 2020 and I sold it 2 weeks into the redemption. I got a 1099-s, discharge of mortgage from the vice president of the company and a closure of account. I also walked away with a check from the sale. I am being told that I have a $26,000 balance on my credit report... View More
answered on Feb 15, 2023
This is FAR more detailed and complicated than can be properly dealt with in a public forum like this.
At a minimum, your attorney will need to see all the written documents (like that 1099 and discharge of mortgage) and look at the documents recorded with the register of deeds.... View More
I went into foreclosure due to divorce in 2020 my house was sold and I recieved a release of mortgage(from the VP of my mortgage company signed by a notary public) and an account paid in full letter only to find out I had a deficiency on the balance. My mortgage company admitted years later they... View More
answered on Feb 3, 2023
This is a little more complicated.
Was the discharge recorded? Do you have the written acknowledgment of payment in full? Did you rely on those representations when closing on the transaction? Did you get a 1099 showing the write off?
If ALL of the above is true, you have a pretty... View More
My brother in law passed away intestate in Michigan 2021, leaving 2 adult sons, no assets. There was never a need to open an estate.
My mother in law passed recently intestate in Georgia and has real estate, etc.
Before we can file for an estate for my mother in law, we have to... View More
answered on Jan 28, 2023
The short answer is 'yes' whenever you open an estate you have to do a LOT of things, including publishing.
The longer answer is -- there are a lot of things that are required, starting with determining whether or not a probate estate is REALLY necessary. How do you come to the... View More
answered on Jan 26, 2023
I'm sorry to hear of your loss.
IF your brother owned the house solely, it will need to go through probate, and his heirs (maybe your mother, maybe not ... it depends on whether or not he had a will, or children, or a spouse etc. none of which you say) so that SOMEONE (be that his... View More
I bought my house 2/2020 and put it up for sale 10/2020 not knowing this was not allowed as I have a RD loan- I used a Realtor and she wrote a bad land contract for the sale. The buyer does not pay as agreed and I want to do a forfeiture but don't trust myself to try alone and really... View More
answered on Jan 24, 2023
Let me rephrase your question slightly and see if you don't spot the 'common thread' here and what you need to do to 'stop the cycle':
1) I bought land without having an attorney review the transaction.
2) I had a real estate agent who is NOT an attorney... View More
We own a parcel of land across the state. We're part of a HOA, although our lot is separated by a half mile from the main grouping of homes that are on a cul-de-sac. The main grouping has voting rights on rules changes, but we do not. The HOA wants to change the Home Rental clause (think Air... View More
answered on Jan 18, 2023
It is impossible to say without reviewing the HOA rules.
The 'short' answer is 'probably'
As a private entity, they can set rules however they want including the rules about amending and voting on rules. If you don't like that, you shouldn't have... View More
Next door neighbor owns a car (junk, not running); the car sits in the back yard between our houses. The car straddles the property line. It's been there for years. I want to clean up my back yard, get landscaping, and put up a fence. The car must be moved. But, my neighbor won't move... View More
answered on Jan 17, 2023
IF (and that is a HUGE unknown!) the car is on your land, the neighbor is trespassing.
Are you 100% Absolutely Positively Undeniably CERTAIN of us on your land? You can have it removed but not necessarily onto the neighbor’s land — unless they neighbor consents to that. (You don’t... View More
It was agreed I pay month to month after March as I was in the process of looking and buying a home, which I found in April and was moved in by May 2018. I moved out at the end of May notified the complex like agreed and left the keys, four years later I'm being sued for June and July rent,... View More
answered on Jan 6, 2023
Do you have COPIES of the documents you delivered returning the keys and providing your forwarding address?
Without copies, you didn't send them (the landlord WILL claim this!)
Your best bet at this point is to hire an attorney to fight this or just pay (a probably smaller... View More
On our mortgage paperwork at closing showed our principal/interest payment was $1,100. They said they miscalculated and said it’s now $1,500. They offered to pay $800 for the 2 months that were miscalculated. Just want to know if we are legally obligated to sign a new closing disclosure with new... View More
answered on Dec 22, 2022
Without reviewing your whole closing package it is impossible to know what your situation is. Did you sign an ‘errors and Omissions’ addendum? What exactly is the ‘error’? Something with your escrow? Did you have an attorney review the paperwork before you closed? They might have caught the... View More
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