Q: How can I get information on a land or house in Puerto Rico left to me.
My Grandmother had a house and land in Puerto Rico. She left the papers to my mother, who she had adopted as an infant, My grandmother passed, My mother just passed and left the papers to me. Someone's living there since childhood who is not blood or legal family but family none the less however he is 75. The plan was to let him live rent free, til he passed however, I want to know what I should do to make sure the papers are up to date on the house and land so I can repair, rebuild etc... I was just in Puerto Rico and visited with the extended family member. He is special needs but functional. I don't know he's ever paid anything like property taxes etc.. and was unable to say exactly... the house is in serious need of repairs or rebuilding especially after hurricane. Where can I start to get information so I can start to prepare for when he is no longer living there? I live in NY. I have the original house papers for the land.
A:
Hello and thank you for using JUSTIA. In order for you to do anything you need to be declared an inheritor of your Grandmother. You should start by verifying the adoption of your Mother to make sure it was done legally thus confirming that indeed you are an inheritor. This can be done by verifying your Mother's birth certificate, old court records or the Registry of Adoption at the Registry of Demographic Records. (Office of Vital Records). In order to get records you will need to hire the services of an Attorney in Puerto Rico. The cost for this verification is around $ 750.00.
If it was done legally, you then will need to verify how many other siblings existed in addition to your Mother since they too would be inheritors of said property. Once that is established, you will need to create your Grandmother's Estate. This is done by finding all the birth certificates of her children, her death certificate, marriage certificate (if Grandmother was married at time of death) and a certification from the Registry of Testaments to assure she if she had or not a Testament. If no Testament is found then you will need to file a Court procedure to declare the inheritors,
Once the inheritors are declared, you then need to file an Inheritance Tax Return that will include the Property taxes due, if any. The Property Taxes is a document issued by the Municipality where the property is located. Once the Tax Department issues a release document, you then will register the property under the names of the members of your Grandmother's Estate. The same procedure needs to be done for your Mother. Once this is done, you then become a legal inheritor and thus have the right to get all the information needed on the property. If the property is registered under your Grandmother and her Husband then the same procedure needs to be done for the Husband. Each procedure has a cost of $ 1,500.00 in lawyer fees and costs. There will be an additional cost for the registration of the property in the name of the inheritors that the Registry of Property charges.
If you require additional information, please feel free to contact me directly.
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