Q: My neighbor next door passed away and I would like to obtain the property.
My neighbor lived like a hermit. His siblings had nothing to do with him. He has one living daughter that he had no contact with. I was thinking that if I got in touch with her, that I could get the property from her since she is the only living next of kin and it is my understanding that the property has gone intestate. Which I understand to believe that the property now belongs to his daughter. Do I need to get a lawyer or just have her sign over the property to me.
A:
She may not have title to the property unless it goes through probate, assuming she wasn't a joint tenant with her father. If she and her father were joint tenants with right of survivorship, she is now the sole owner and probate is probably not required. If her father was the sole owner -- or even if she was a co-owner but not a joint tenant -- probate almost certainly will be required to pass title to her so that she can sell to you. She can make a contract with you to sell the property she expects to inherit, but if you want to do this, you'd best have an attorney -- if there are heirs you don't know about, or if he died with a valid will, her contract with you may not mean much other than a lawsuit.
I would suggest speaking to her about your interest in the property. Then if she's actually the legal owner and is willing to sell it to you, hire an attorney to protect you with a purchase contract, to verify that you'll be getting clear title to the property, and other sound legal advice.
PS: My comments here are offered for information purposes only and are not legal advice about your specific circumstances or any potentially applicable law. They are not offered as an invitation to join in, nor intended to create, nor do they create, an attorney-client relationship.
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