Monday, December 27, 2010

Ask a Lawyer - The Law & You - Orlando Sentinel

Removing deceased son's name from deed

http://epaper.orlandosentinel.com/OS/OS/2010/12/27/index.shtml

Q I helped my son buy a home by having both our names on the deed.
He was a single father raising a young child. He died in an accident a
few months ago and did not have a will.
I now want to sell the home. Can I do that with my son's name on the
deed? If not, is there a simple, inexpensive way to have his name
removed from the deed?
B.M.
KISSIMMEE

A How to best proceed depends on the deed and whether the title was
vested to both of you with "rights of survivorship." If the deed
didn’t mention survivorship, ownership could be deemed a “tenancy in
common” and your son’s heirs may be entitled to possession of the
property.
If a person dies without a will, the first to inherit is the
deceased's spouse and descendant(s). If there’s no spouse or
descendants, then the estate goes to the decedent’s father and mother
equally, or to the survivor of them. As your son was single and
survived by a young child, his child would inherit his estate.
To convey insurable title to the property, probate may be necessary
to declare that the decedent's expenses, debts and taxes do not attach
to the property. Summary Administration – an abbreviated probate
process – is cheapest, provided the estate, excluding exempt property,
doesn’t exceed $75,000.

Question answered by attorney Lawrence H. Kolin

No comments:

Post a Comment