Williamston, SC asked in Probate

Q: Mom quit-claim deed her home to her eight children. 5 siblings have passed without probate over the past 15 years.

Mn. says we are tenants in common when we understood we were joint tenants since mom and dad were when she quit claimed the home. Can we claim their share as abondoned property? How do we force probate after all these years when we are not their spouse or children and they live out of state?

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Nina Whitehurst
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Answered
  • Probate Lawyer
  • Crossville, TN

A: If the children were all named as tenants in common, which is presumed if the deed does not say otherwise, and some of the owners have died, those shares do need to be probated and retitled in the named of their heirs at law or heirs per their wills, if they had wills. Any interested party can open a probate, and in some cases an abbreviated procedure might work. You should discuss the options with a probate attorney located in or near the same county as the property.

After probating the interests of the deceased owners, individual owners can purchase the interests of other owners in order to consolidate ownership, if desired.

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