Q: My father & step mom owned a house equally.She died 9/16/16. Are her children entitled to equity earned after her death?
They had agreement that the survivor could remain in home until they could no longer take care of it. He tried to pay them out. Real estate has increased significantly in last 4 months. House has increased by 30,000 since November.
A: If the surviving spouse is entitled to live in the home for life or until she/he can no longer take care of it, then the persons entitled to the house (including any equity in it) after that are contingent remainder-men who don't have any rights to the house until the survivor passes or cannot take care of the house.
A: The surviving children may have rights to the remainder interest, but their rights under the probate code can be lost if there is a will, trust, or transfer on death deed that specifies other beneficiaries.
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