Q: My mother died 6 years ago leaving me her house. Is there a way to get the deed in my name before the probate complete.
My sister lived in the house here in TN but has since moved to FL. Me and my husband want to renovate it and move in. We need the deed in my name to get the loan for renovations. We were told probate will take up to a year even though my siblings will not contest the will.
A: What is the question? If the proposed Will is your potential source of title, then that is what you must Probate to get title irregardless how long the process. Be aware there may be Claims and someone has to pay taxes and insurance. And it is usually at least 15 months if a simple Probate. When the Will is Probated, the Devisees take title that day. But most lenders will not lend money until the Estate is closed.
A: It sounds like you already have a probate open, so this question really should be directed to your probate attorney. Your probate attorney will need to ascertain whether the will brought in the house as a probate asset. Some wills do and some wills don't. If the will is silent on this, then the house is NOT a probate asset and you might be able to get it transferred using a simplified process that is a lot quicker than a full probate. If the will did bring the house in as a probate asset, or if the house needs to be sold to pay creditor claims, then you are looking at waiting until the bitter end of the probate. Sorry. This is exactly why I usually recommend trust-based estate plans as opposed to will-based estate plans.
Anthony M. Avery agrees with this answer
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