Q: What are the legal implications if an executor of an estate wants to purchase the residential property of said estate?
The surviving siblings include one who is the executor. The offer to purchase the family home is being made with the condition that a real estate agent will not handle the transaction as a listing/sale, so as to increase the value of the estate to the heirs. How do the remaining siblings handle the transaction? Who hires the attorney?
A:
The absence of a realtor is a plus and results in about a 5 to 6% savings for the estate.
If all of the heirs agree to the terms, including the purchaser/executor, each heir will have to sign the purchase contract agreeing to sell the property to the executor and will need to sign the deed transferring ownership from the estate to the executor individually.
The selection of the attorney to represent the estate is not so clear, hopefully all heirs can agree to the selection of an attorney.
A:
You ask about the "legal implications" of an Executor who is also a surviving sibling (of the Decedent?) buying the Estate's property and asking that a real estate agent not be involved. Without going too deep into the details, this idea appears wrong on every level. In short, there are red flags here:
(1) Is the Executor of the this Estate also a beneficiary?
(2) The Court should be apprised before any deal is made.
(3) A real estate agent SHOULD be employed to get the highest price and ensure an arm's length transaction
I could go on, but the point is that there is just too much that could go wrong in this situation. If I were you I would retain an Attorney to ensure that the remaining siblings (beneficiaries?) of the Estate are not shorted out of their fair share.
I hope this information was helpful. Best of luck.
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