Q: My stepsister sold house that my dad and her mom owned together without permission from her stepsiblings. No will. Ok?
Dad died in 12/2020 and her mom died early 2022. To my knowledge neither had a will. They live in Virginia.
A: You might want a consultation with a Virginia lawyer to review the matter, but if the house was owned by dad and step-mom by entireties, and dad died first, the house belonged solely to step-mom when she died. I would think in a second marriage, the parties would title their home better, use a Will, or, best, put everything in a trust.
Ross Cameron Hart agrees with this answer
A:
Mr. Sternberg is absolutely correct: it depends on how the deed was written when they got the house, or if your dad owned it before they were married, did he change the ownership to a survivorship with step-mom. If the deed has both names with either the phrase 'tenants by the entirety' or 'joint tenants with survivorship' then on Dad's death stepmother completely owned the property and her daughter as sole heir became the only owner of the property.
This happens a lot on second marriages.
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