Q: What is the proper way to deal with a property under contact at the time of a person's death who had a legal gaurdian?
I was the legal guardian of my father before he passed away recently. His home was under contract to sell before he passed. His attorney says a deceasant account needs to be set up with more attorney/court fees-up front to the tune of about $7600 because the guardianship judge will not sign off on for the guardianship to transfer. Someone reached out to me and told me that is not the case. That all transaction fees can come from the proceeds which should be no more than $1000. I thank you in advance for your expeditious reply.
A:
The problem is that you don't have authority to consummate the sale, since you are no longer the guardian (your powers terminated upon your father's death) and no Administrator or Personal Representative of your father's estate has yet been appointed by a court. You will almost certainly have to commence a probate proceeding and be appointed PR or Administrator in order to close the sale. The initial cost of the probate filing should not be as high as you say. Once the probate case is opened, you can petition to complete the sale and the PR's attorney's fees can probably be either deducted from the sale proceeds or permitted by the court to be paid by the estate once it receives the net proceeds. You shouldn't have to come out of pocket to pay all of those fees up front. Contact some probate lawyers in your area. You should be able to find some that will work with you to minimize the cost to you personally. Justia.com can help you find some. Good luck.
PS: My comments here are for general information and are not legal advice on your specific situation nor do they create an attorney-client relationship between us. Consult an experienced lawyer in your state for legal advice for your specific issues.
Stephanie Sexauer agrees with this answer
A:
Hi there,
In Illinois, you'll have two options.
One is to open a decedent's estate, and I agree with Mr. Meek, those fees don't need to be charged up front.
The second option is to do a deed in lieu of probate, as long as the rest of the assets total less than $100,000.00. This is something you'll work with an attorney to do with the title company (though the fees are high with this as well, if the sale occurs within two years of death).
It's true that the guardianship Judge no longer has authority to grant the sale.
You'll need to find a probate attorney in Cook County to help you (if Dad lived in Cook County).
I hope this helps!
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