Q: My grandpa passed and did not leave a will. His kids didn’t go to probate or pay mortgage. What are my option to save it
The mortgage has not been paid since he passed. And the tenants just received a foreclosure notice. The property needs more work than it’s worth but I spent so many summer days there and it has great sentimental value of the property. How can I stop it from being foreclosed on and not have my tweaker aunts and uncles demanding money from me. The house has turned into a drug house. I already own one home and have already been approved for a second loan (we were recently looking to buy another home but decided not to because of the interest rates and we have an upcoming wedding). I’m afraid they’ll let it get foreclosed on instead of letting me take it over in hopes I give them something. I really don’t want my family to lose this home.
A: You need to consult with a probate attorney. Because there was no will, the laws of intestate apply (ie property goes to grandpas kids, then grandkids, etc). Talk with a probate attorney if there is anything that can be done if grandpas kids won’t sign away their interest.
A:
First, I agree with Ms. Gurewich; you must consult with a probate attorney. But, if a foreclosure notice has been recorded and served, you may not have much time. Depending on where the property is located, and how the mortgage/deed of trust is drafted, opening a probate, at considerable expense, may not catch up with the legal process to take the property to satisfy the debt.
Second, while this is a matter of sentiment for you, you must treat this as a business transaction. You have already done your sums and have concluded that the repairs that the mortgage far in excess of the value of the property. To get to a rational decision on this, you must do a business plan, determine how much it will cost you to open a probate, after which the grandparent's kids get the property; make a rational offer to the kids to acquire their interest, deducting your costs, and then satisfying the mortgage.
Likely a refinance of the property will not satisfy all of those needs. Unless you have wealth independent of the investments you already have made, this may be an extraordinarily difficult row to hoe.
Last, consider an alternative based on the investment you may be required to make in the home in foreclosure. You may find that other, better opportunities, absent a family fight, a probate, and foreclosure, might be a more prudent choice.
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