Thought it was mine

[37 chief]

My brother died over a year ago. Mom left him the house he never transferred it out of her trust to him self, he never married. I am the trustee of Mom's
trust. I transferred the property to myself a year ago. I thought everything was good. I had another brother who was my step brother, he also died. Now his two daughters show up, and want 1/2 of my other brothers estate. It may happen. I have an attorney to straighten it out. What ever happens I usually end up with the short stick. Stan

 

[Buddy]

Families ! They something ain't they ! Always got their hand stuck out for something free. Least mine was.

 

[300jk]

Thats too bad . Doesnt sound like they had anything to do with the place or anything else. Want a freebie ! Pretty sad.

 

[Mike(NEOhio)]

It's a job for your attorney to figure out in your best interest. Wills (or lack of them) bring out the best in people.

 

[Bob Bancroft]

If you end up with something, it's better than nothing. After Dad died, mother and baby brother totally shut out the other three of us. It didn't take long for them to lose everything. Multi-generational farm, and everything that went with it.

 

[john in la]

Trying to reason how you figure how something that belonged to your mother or even your unmarried brother becomes 100 percent yours when there is a third sibling involved. And any interest the third sibling had is past to his kids just like your interest will be passed to your kids.

The only chance you got of getting 100 percent is if your step brother signed off as he did not want anything giving you 100 percent before he died. Then and only then would his two daughters be written out.

This may not be the law but it is the way I would vote if I was on the jury.

 

[muleman51]

My siblings and I ended up with a battle with step siblings after my Dad passed. What a mess. All I can say is get your affairs in order and check them every few years. It costs attorney fees up front but less than the second time around.

 

[504]

The laws are different from state to state,but it can be a mess. I know a woman who died and left the house to her husband. The kids were hers,his, and theirs. The hers and theirs told dad to just leave things as they were,but after(I think it was two years)they took him to court and he had to buy the place from the kids. If he would have transferred it into his name, it would have been his.

 

[PJH]

We had an interesting situation here in our little community. A man and woman had both lost their spouses to early death. They palled around, fell in love and got married. Both had grown children. After a few years, while travelling, they were pulling onto an interstate down south and something went wrong. The death certificates showed their time of death just a few minutes apart, with the husband dying before the wife. The husband's children moved right in, hooking onto a big boat that was parked in the couple's yard. After the court battle, the wife's son demanded that they return the big boat since his mother had survived her husband by a few minutes. It was a spectacular drama. The chagrined son indeed returned the boat. As soon as he got it unhooked from his truck, the woman's son told him to hook it back up and get it out of his sight. He didn't want anything to do with the boat, but he wanted them to know that he was intolerant of shysters.

 

[Traditional Farmer]

As others said get an estate attorney,the two daughters may or may not be entitled to something.Court case near me went on to the VA Supreme Court one of the siblings had died before the siblings mother.Court ruled none of the deceased siblings children got anything when the mother died.In your case you have the house in your name and if you do nothing they will have to take you to court to get anything.As the old saying goes possession is 90% of the law.

 

[Dave BN]

PJH, wills are usually written that one spouse must out live the other by at least 24 hours or they are legally considered to have died at the same time. That would make a difference in that case.
Funny how things change after a family member dies.
Dave

 

[MarkB_MI]

Stan, I don't understand 'Mom left him the house he never transferred it out of her trust to himself'. Either the house was in the trust or it was not; if it was in the trust she couldn't leave it to him in her will. I'm guessing it was in the trust but she expressed her wish that it go to your brother. Since you're the trustee, it's entirely up to you do determine what to do with the house.

The big question is, was your stepbrother a beneficiary of the trust? If he was, then he was entitled to a share of your mom's trust. If not, he wasn't.

The next question is, did your natural brother leave a will? If he did, the will would dictate whether or not your stepbrother was entitled to a share of your brother's estate.

My guess is he died intestate, which means state law determines who his heirs are. California law gives HALF-brothers the same rights to an estate as full brothers. But I don't think this carries over to STEP-brothers who don't share a parent with the decedent.

If it was me I'd tell them to go pound sand. Of course my advice is worth, at the most, what you paid for it. Pay Lawyerman, and follow his advice.
CA law on half siblings

 

[ss55]

The attorney who handles the trust should be able to advise you. The trust should cover the attorney fees. Sounds like some basic things were overlooked or neglected, so maybe consult a second attorney for confirmation.

 

[Pitalplace]

After 16 yrs in law-enforcement and watching two brothers beating each other after their dad's funeral. I decided that anything that belonged to someone else is not mine. I don't want it. You are not going to hold the ranch over me, I will not fight over my share, I'm not interested. I watched more families fight over stuff, it was so sad. The funny part is my family is mad at me because I won't fight.

 

[jimg.allentown]

The best piece of advice you have gotten here is to leave it to a lawyer that specializes in estates. That is my advice as well. Let the professionals that know the law do their job.

 

[gajack]

was going to say something poor about a niece...
thought better of it.
Good luck gentlemen, Best to all.
jac

 

[Fordy20]

If you're the trustee of your mother's estate, wouldn't you have to transfer the house to you're brother? How would he be able to transfer it if he's not the trustee? Whoever the heirs of your brother's estate are, it would seem, should get the house. Life is just to short for the strain and stress of squabbling over an inheritance with family. Surely some compromise could be reached without getting lawyers involved.