OK, a Mom and Dad own a house and are advised to put the house in their adult children's names. They sell each child a share at $1 each with the stipulation that the children cannot kick the parents out of the house, but once they died, the children would own the house and avoid probation. The problem with this scenario is that the act was done without the children knowing. It was discussed years ago, but they did not know it was actually done until the Dad passed away and the Mom was looking into selling the house, only to find out that she was not on the deed and that her children were. So, now what? What are the ramifications? Is this a binding deed when the children never signed anything in front of a notary? Should the children just proceed with a quit claim and deed the house back to the Mom or should they challenge the lawyer who drew up the papers that ultimately got the deed changed in the first place? Please let me know what you think. Thanks!

Is this a binding deed when the children never signed anything in front of a notary?

Yes - kids don't need to sign - just the Dad... although the children could argue INTENT of the Dad since the deed was not delivered to children which is a part of the process... Mom should be able to live in the house until she dies and children can sell.

Hello lea:

IF mom and the kids are in agreement, then they ALL should hire a lawyer to do it for them. Otherwise they're liable to screw it up again.

Uhhhh, don't hire that other lawyer.

excon

OK, a Mom and Dad own a house and are advised to put the house in their adult children's names. They sell each child a share at $1 each with the stipulation that the children cannot kick the parents out of the house, but once they died, the children would own the house and avoid probation. The problem with this scenario is that the act was done without the children knowing. It was discussed years ago, but they did not know it was actually done until the Dad passed away and the Mom was looking into selling the house, only to find out that she was not on the deed and that her children were. So, now what? What are the ramifications? Is this a binding deed when the children never signed anything in front of a notary? Should the children just proceed with a quit claim and deed the house back to the Mom or should they challenge the lawyer who drew up the papers that ultimately got the deed changed in the first place? Please let me know what you think. Thanks!



Not 100% sure because this is certainly not my area of "expertise" but it is my understanding that a Deed is a contract and all the terms and conditions must be within the four corners of the Deed - no side pocket deals. I do not think you can Deed property with any side provisions. That is what trusts are for. An Attorney recommended this instead of a trust? Or is there a trust and this Deed is part of that package?

And you can Deed property to anyone without their knowledge and consent - although in theory the taxes and insurance would have to be paid by the new owners so I would think they would find out very quickly.

Yes, the children could quit claim the property back to the mother - but I would do nothing without an Attorney (and not the same one!).

I'm a little confused that your parents owned the house jointly, it was deeded to their children (which means they both had to sign), now the father is dead, the mother wants to sell - and she didn't know the house wasn't in her name? Or am I reading this wrong?

Thank you for your answers. Will talk to new lawyer and get it figured out soon. Thanks again!

The thing that bothers me here is that the Mom didn't know. Assuming the deed was joint between mom and dad then dad couln't not have completed this transaction without mom knowing. However, it is possible for the deed to be legal with the children not knowing. Basically it was a gift with a delayed giving. But there may be some tax consequences of this transaction.

But the bottomline is you need an attorney to unravel what happened and provide a clear title so mom can sell.

Mom signed but did not realize what she was signing. Says now that she did not know that she was taking herself off the deed. In fact, I think both Mom and Dad were adding the children on without taking themselves off, but not sure. I think it was just poor advise and poorly handled. Anyway, I can't speculate, but will get new lawyer to straighten it all out. Thanks again for all your answers.