Oy, That I Thought I Had Stuff to Worry About Before

fureverywhere

fureverywhere

beloved friend who will always be with us in spiri
Location
Northern NJ, USA
If you will allow me to type out this foolishness, because right now I'm having palpitations:mad::mad::mad:

For a time some years ago my husband had his Dad to care for. It was end stage Parkinson's and other problems. His brother offered one day to have Dad come and stay with him in Virginia. Hubby was working long hours so he agreed. The "visit" turned into the brother taking over all his father's finances.

Then within a few months Dad conveniently died. The original will disappeared too. Now his brother came up with a will rewritten naming himself and his wife as executors of the estate. That is the family home we live in. Hubby and his sister should have started screaming then, but they let it go.


Now fast forward ten years. Today we get a letter saying they're putting the house on the market. My husband has been paying taxes here for more than twenty years. We're calling our attorney on Monday. We have to fight this rat bastard. Hubby has to understand it isn't about it being his brother anymore.
 

Thank you Falcon, this is one of the few times I almost wished I owned a gun...probably good that I don't.
 

I don't know about contesting the will. Truth to tell hubby isn't the most book smart, it's about guiding him towards what works for our family...hey your brother is blood but
johnny-cash-flipping-the-bird.jpg


Yep, that's it
 
Glad you're fighting it with a lawyer Fur, that's terrible. Your husband is too kind, he needs to stand his ground, his brother doesn't have any regard for him obviously. Brotherly love doesn't mean becoming a victim.
 
fureverywhere said:
..............Now fast forward ten years. Today we get a letter saying they're putting the house on the market. My husband has been paying taxes here for more than twenty years. We're calling our attorney on Monday. We have to fight this rat bastard. Hubby has to understand it isn't about it being his brother anymore.
Click to expand...

Rat bastard may win out, if you are not very careful. "The Law" vs. "What's right and Just", often allow the righteous little leeway, other than to bend over.

Please keep us apprised of activity. imp
 
I've seen family estate problems cause serious problems over the years. I'd check and see was the "new" will notarized, done by or in the presence of a lawyer or witness and has his dad's or proxy's signature. I get tax records pulled to show who is/was paying as well.

I know somebody who lost a lot of stuff/inheritance when the deceased storage unit was raided under the guise of being cleared out to save on paying the bill. But the deceased knew certain people would be a problem and spread out/hid several items in as many as 4 locations with different people.

Some people don't like confrontation or conflict even when necessary and wind up paying the price when a small/soft challenge early on would have put a halt to things.
 
Am I correct in assuming that the house was part of the estate that was to be split between the three children?
If this is correct then the sale of the house has been delayed for 10 years. It will be difficult to argue with that.

I knew a couple who were in the same situation. A house was left to a brother and sister but because the sister had a home she allowed her brother and his wife to live in it for years and used it as a place to stay when she needed to come to the city. Then her son enrolled in a University course and she wanted her share of the value of the house, It had to be sold and our friends had to leave.

What does your SIL think. Could you and she join together to buy out the share of your BIL?

My only advice it to collect every piece of paper that you think might allow you to claim back money spent on the home but your BIL might respond by claiming back rent. You really do need that lawyer. I hope he knows his stuff.
 
imp said:
Rat bastard may win out, if you are not very careful. "The Law" vs. "What's right and Just", often allow the righteous little leeway, other than to bend over.

Please keep us apprised of activity. imp
Click to expand...

It's possible, but I'm not sure. If you and your husband paid the property taxes on it for 20 years by yourselves??? This may help your case but little more if the will was properly notarized and complied to the rules of the state in which it was signed. The evil brother may be determined to be the owner of your house, in which case he can sell it.

I'm so sorry this is happening to you fur.
 
Money... the love of money tears apart many a family. My wife's mother had a "black sheep" brother. He and his wife "befriended" my wife's grandmother. When she passed, no one could find any paperwork as to bank statements, wills, etc. The brother said she wanted everything burned so someone wouldn't steal her identity. Ummm... we knew who did the "stealing". Attorneys had to get involved and it got real ugly.
My wife took care of an elderly couple for a number of years. She checked on them daily, took them to doctor appointments, grocery shopped for them.... assisted them through the difficult times until both were deceased. Relatives lived on the East Coast. Hadn't even visited the couple for over two years prior to their deaths. The couple always referred to my wife as their daughter. My wife lost her dad at an early age and this couple filled a big gap in her "family". When they passed, the relatives swarmed in like maggots. Began cleaning out the house and selling off things. My wife told them she had been promised a particular set of dishes. No way!! It wasn't in the "will", so they told her to go pound sand. Over $250,000 in cash in the safety deposit box. $250,000 home. Bunches of collectible coins. My wife never asked for anything except the dishes... and got nothing. If we had been smarter, would have taken photos of the safety deposit box and sent it to IRS.
 
This looks like something you will need a lawyer to straighten out, but I don't see anything shady on the part of the brother. If the 3 children are beneficiaries of the house, then the house needs to be sold and proceeds divided up between them. You might be liable for rent for 10 years, minus the taxes. Being executors doesn't entitle one to necessarily be a beneficiary, unless it is stated in a will. I don't see anything amiss, but the shock of having to leave the estate home would of course feel very threatening.
 
Too many familes falter when it comes to inheritance issues and greed rears its ugly head...
 

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