Q: My dad passed 5 years ago and there was no will. His wife of about 5 years was beneficiary on life insurance and pension
The house is in probate and I was named executor by the court. His wife will not sign for the sale of the house I know she is entitled to a percentage under Tenn law we have been to court several times and she agreed to list in real estate but won’t ever sign the sellers agreement so we can’t move forward what percentage is she entitled to and is there a way we can sell it without her signature?
A: You say no Will but you are the Executor? Something is wrong, and I bet you are the Court appointed Administrator. You should never have filed Probate in the first place. The house probably is not in the Probate Estate but passed to the Heirs 5 years ago, unless this is an insolvent Estate. A competent attorney is needed here, if only for advice. More than likely the Heirs/Owners can file a Partition Action to sell the House (and an attorney is necessary here). A Title Search is needed first, and then probably an Affidavit of Heirship needs to be recorded. If insolvent then the Court orders it sold to pay debts against the Estate.
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