Q: Is family responsible for deceased father's empty house, in Puerto Rico, when there's is no will? We don't want house.

A: Your deceased father's heirs certainly would be responsible for upkeeping and maintaining his house, as well as paying outstanding property taxes, assuming that they accept his estate in inheritance. Under the Puerto Rico Rule of Law, the estate of a deceased person is made up of his/her assets and liabilities (i.e. debts). At the moment of his/her death, each of the heirs apparent must freely decide whether to accept the inheritance or whether to reject it. This may be done by way of a public instrument (deed poll) or before the courts. If deciding to accept the inheritance, it can be accepted by way of inventory (in which case, an heir is responsible for his/her fathers debt up to his/her share of the inheritance) or accept the inheritance unconditionally (in which case, the heirs assume responsibility for all of the father's debts, regardless of whether the debts exceed the heir's share in the estate). If you decide to repudiate the inheritance, you must do so utterly, unequivocally, irrevocably. You cannot accept part of an inheritance and reject another part.

If you live in the continental U.S., you can repudiate and reject the inheritance before a notary public, have the document apostilled (certified) by the state's State Department, and have a Puerto Rico attorney-notary protocolize said document and include as a supplemental to the instance filed with the Public Registry to notify of change in ownership.