Q: My dad was married and divorced and had one daughter. He originally purchased the home with his wife. He later married
My mother and 3 children were born. My dad and his ex wife transferred the deed to my dad and my mom. The deed indicates that she was paid $10,000 back in 1978 and the new deed is in my dad and mom’s name. My dad passed away in 2002 without a will. His estate was settled in 2003. My mom lived alone iMy mom refinanced the home to get the mortgage in her name. We were her support system. Sadly, she died in 2006 without a will. My 2 siblings and I have paid the mortgage and taxes in the home for the last 10 years. We all have lived there at some point during this time. Now we are thinking of selling and my half sister is suing for her portion of the sale. Does she have a claim? She believes that she has rights because my dad is on the deed. She’s never contributed financially to the upkeep of the home or the mortgage.
A:
There are several ways people can own property jointly in this state and an attorney cannot answer the question of who might have an interest in the property without knowing which way the deed was titled. If a married couple owns as tenants by the entirety by operation of law the surviving spouse owns 100% and the surviving spouse can pass their interest to their own heirs regardless of what would have happened if the order of deaths had been reversed.
In some limited cases, a divorce decree may grant an interest in property (or the proceeds) regardless of titling. However it would be unusual for an interest to survive after a post-divorce deed took care of re-titling property.
Your post mentions a pending lawsuit, an attorney cannot analyze a lawsuit without looking at the filed complaint. Anyone facing litigation should consult with an attorney to review the claims made in the lawsuit.
While I hope you find this general legal information helpful, it does not attempt to offer any legal advice or analyze a particular deed or claim. I strongly encourage you to seek legal advice -- an attorney can look at the relevant deed and other documents and offer some insight on how to proceed.
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