Q: Do I have to get mortgage in my name if my spouse dies and I get the deed? They were the sole name on loan/deed.
I will get the deed to a home owned by my spouse signed over to me from his estate. However, I don’t want to go through the process of trying to refinance in my name. If his estate stays open, can I get the deed to the property but also keep the loan in his name forever? Will the mortgage company eventually force me ? I’ve been keeping up with the payments. Or will I only be forced in some way to get financing one the estate closes ? I just don’t want to have to worry about getting approved because I’m not sure I will, which was why he did the financing but I want the house.
A:
Under federal law the lender may NOT call the loan due and may NOT force you to refinance. As the borrower's "successor in interest" you are entitled to receive the monthly statements going forward. As long as you keep up the payments, the lender may not foreclose.
You may have to prove that you are the successor in interest by providing some kind of documentation to the lender such as an affidavit of heirship or executor's deed.
James Blount Griffin agrees with this answer
A: Ms. Whitehurst is correct. The only thing I would add is that the insurer of the home will likely want the home in the name of the person living in it and might threaten cancellation of insurance if title has not been transferred by deed.
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