Q: My mother was left a condo in her deceased husband's will 4 years ago. She has not changed the name from him to her.
I want to buy the condo and was not sure if she can when it's still in his name. She is owner financing it for me and I got a contract drawn up but want to be sure it would be legal for her to be named as the seller or does the name of the owner be changed to her before executing the contact
A: If the Will was admitted to probate as a Muniment of Title, the Order admitting it should be filed in the deed records. If not, a Distribution Deed from the estate to the beneficiary should be recorded. Without one or the other of these, your mother has no legal authority to sell the property to you.
Tammy L. Wincott and Nina Whitehurst agree with this answer
A: Also, make sure that the will has actually been to probate. You only get 4 years to take a will to probate, by default. If the will hasn't been probated, then get with a probate lawyer quickly so you can get squared away. After that, you can deal with the paperwork to sell the condo to you (which should be pretty easy).
Nina Whitehurst and Tammy L. Wincott agree with this answer
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