Q: How long before an estate can no longer go to probate after a person dies with no will in Oklahoma.
Six years ago my mother-in-law passed away with no will. The estate never went through probate because one of the siblings kept saying they would get around to selling the house and dividing the rest of the estate between the surviving siblings. The siblings are not wanting to wait any longer but the older sister says the house and the rest of the estate belongs to her and can not go through probate because she has paid the property taxes for the last 6 years. Is this correct or can the estate still go to probate? Thank you.
A: Paying taxes alone does not vest title in the individual. Sounds like a probate is needed to get the house sold, even if the sister resists.
A:
Paying real estate taxes does not make someone the owner of the house.
As far as the State of Oklahoma is concerned, your mother-in-law is still the owner. The way to correct this is to file a probate case.
Anyone of the siblings can file a probate. As part of the paperwork, it will be necessary to list the house as an asset.
Then, it will be up to the slow-to-sell-the-house sibling to file a claim with the probate court asking to be reimbursed for the property taxes they have paid.
So, the house gets sold, the real estate commission and any closing costs get paid, the slow-to-sell-the-house sibling gets reimbursed for 6-years of real estate taxes (assuming they filed their claim), and any money left over gets divided between ALL of the siblings.
This is not a complicated situation.
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