How to add my sister and my name to the title of a property after my mother passed away.

Question

The property is owned by my mother, aunt and uncle. All of the them are on the title. My mother passed away in 2016 without a will. For clarity, there are no family issues and my aunt and uncle agree that my sister and I should be added to the title in place of my mother who passed away. What steps do we need to take?

Jane Kim · Answer

It should be probated. You need a probate lawyer.

James W. Martin · Answer

The first step with real estate is to purchase a title insurance commitment from a licensed Florida title insurance agent. It will state what is required to insure marketable title.

Phillip William Gunthert · Answer

You will want to start by getting a copy of the current property deed and have it reviewed by a probate attorney/real estate attorney, the property may pass based on how the current deed is held. If this is not the case then some variation of probate will likely be needed and you will need a Florida Probate Attorney. Any assets in your mom's name alone without some sort of pay on death or transfer on death designation or joint ownership will likely need to be probated. The type of probate will depend on the type of assets and their overall value. You really need to speak with an attorney because this could be as simple as your aunt and uncle doing a quit claim deed from them to them and you and your sister or it could be substantially more complicated related to a probate. If there is no Will as you have stated then the Florida Intestate Statutes (without a Will) are going to apply, it will matter if there is a surviving spouse, if there is none and no will as you have stated, then her estate is split between you and your siblings equally. Whether the property is part of this will be determined by what the current/last deed said.

Jason Siegel · Answer

I would recommend checking the Miami Dade Property Appraiser's website at https://www.miamidade.gov/pa/property_search.asp to review the deed on the property. Does the deed state that your mother, along with your aunt and uncle, owned the property with rights of survivorship or does it say tenants in common? If it states rights of survivorship then likely your aunt and uncle are now the owners of the property. I would then discuss this with a qualified real estate/estate planning attorney to have a deed from aunt and uncle to you and your sister. I agree with another attorney on this thread that it would be advisable to get a title policy issued for this conveyance. It will cost more money but it will ensure you and your sister have a good title to this property. There could also be some additional issues if there is a loan on the property and once you are on title you should contact the homeowner's insurance agent to make sure you and your sister are covered as an insured on the policy.

Q: How to add my sister and my name to the title of a property after my mother passed away.