Q: My stepmom signed a disclaimer to any and all of my deceased fathers assets.
There is a trust done as well and we thought the last two houses would be included in that trust. The lawyer found that her name is on the last two houses on the deeds. He says she now owns them outright. They also had an agreement when the houses sell, then my dad got back any and all money he put in the house. He was the one that paid for the house and the expense of renovations. When the house sells they split the profits. This was just a mutual agreement, with nothing signed to this fact. We would like to know with the signed disclaimer would this take any rights she has to these properties? She has signed a disclaimer, release and waiver of rights a month after they were married. She has always said that my father's things should go to his kids. My older brother and sister are guarantor of the trust. Do we have any legal rights to get these last two houses back into the trust. We plan on honoring their agreement on the those last two houses. This has caused some tension.
A: The attorney handling your father's estate should be able to advise you on this. He is correct that, if your dad and stepmom's names were on the deed and they were married, the real estate now belongs to her solely. You should ask your attorney about drawing up some kind of family settlement agreement which would describe in detail the settlement so that all heirs are happy with it.
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