Q: Do I need to probate household items if I own the house?
My aunt sold me her house in 2016, but still lived in it until her death this year. Do the household items need to be probated or are they mine since I’ve owned the house since 2016?
A:
Contents of a house are separate from the house. IF your aunt still owned the contents when she died, then they are part of her probate estate.
I put "IF" in capital letters because that is a missing fact. Did she own them? Or did she sell them to you with the house? You would have to go back to the contract you signed with her to purchase the house and see if it also included contents. Was there a bill of sale for the contents? If so, then you probably own them.
In most states (you did not say which state this is), the typical Board of Realtors contract form states that contents left behind are included in the sale. If you did not engage a realtor or an attorney to help you with the purchase and did this on your own, the contents probably did not get assigned to you.
Justia Ask a Lawyer is a forum for consumers to get answers to basic legal questions. Any information sent through Justia Ask a Lawyer is not secure and is done so on a non-confidential basis only.
The use of this website to ask questions or receive answers does not create an attorney–client relationship between you and Justia, or between you and any attorney who receives your information or responds to your questions, nor is it intended to create such a relationship. Additionally, no responses on this forum constitute legal advice, which must be tailored to the specific circumstances of each case. You should not act upon information provided in Justia Ask a Lawyer without seeking professional counsel from an attorney admitted or authorized to practice in your jurisdiction. Justia assumes no responsibility to any person who relies on information contained on or received through this site and disclaims all liability in respect to such information.
Justia cannot guarantee that the information on this website (including any legal information provided by an attorney through this service) is accurate, complete, or up-to-date. While we intend to make every attempt to keep the information on this site current, the owners of and contributors to this site make no claims, promises or guarantees about the accuracy, completeness or adequacy of the information contained in or linked to from this site.
