Coli Real Estate Professionals & RE Lawyers, I Need Some Advice....

[invalid]

Ok here's the dilemma.

Aunt and Uncle passed away in 2016.

They have a total of six properties in:
1) Chicago Sub
2) Sarasota
3) Philly Sub
4) Jamaica
5) Hawaii
6) Martha's Vineyard

Before they passed away, they had been staying full-time at their Sarasota residence. Additionally, their estranged son (my cousin), who was homeless at one point, came to look after them in Sarasota. I think he came to help in hopes of inheriting their estate when they died.

Ok. So they died and had a will.

He's the only one that knows what's in the will.

And he has failed to report that my aunt and uncle passed away.

The prevailing thought is that they left him nothing and willed away their Jamaican residence to a Jamaican orphanage they were benefactors of for many years. This assumption is based off of verbal conversations that they had with other relatives in a year or so before they died.

Using this assumption, we think that they willed their other residences away to other organizations, including their Chicago suburban house, which may have been willed to a local church.

But we don't know what's in the will and my cousin won't divulge because he's currently living in their Florida house and still has access to their bank accounts. Divulging that they died means he would have to give all that up and go back to being homeless plus he's committing fraud.

Here is where I come in.

Taxes have not been paid on any of the residences except the one my cousin is staying in Sarasota. I have no idea what is happening with their other properties but the property here in Chicago is listed as being up for a tax sale. I just found this out driving past their old place and noticing the house not being occupied and in disrepair. Didn't even know that it was still in their name and no one took possession until I looked up the residence on the county website.

I am interested in having my trust buy up the taxes and take possession of the house before someone else bids on it. Would like to keep that property in our family. So after three years of paying the taxes on the residence, I then get conferred full ownership of the house.

The issue:

With the house still being in my aunt and uncle's name (because their son did not report their deaths), and because the property was not transferred to it's rightful owners or whoever it was willed to, if I pay the taxes and take possession and then ownership of the house, if within the next few years, the rightful owners get knowledge of the will and step forward, 1) who then is the rightful owner of the house?

2) If it's not me, would I be able to sale the house to the rightful owners at market rate? 3) If not, would I be able to recoup the taxes that I paid on the house and any and all upgrades that I made on the house in the interim?

When I put a bid in at the tax sale, I will not divulge my relationship to the owners. I will not divulge that they died. I'm simply a random buyer putting in a bid.

I have no interest in living in the house. I will fix it up to maybe rent out, or, give to my cousin in Sarasota if he has to become homeless again, after all, it was his parents house. That, however, will look super suspect, like we concocted a plan for him to get his parents property despite not being in their will.

Any advice will be appreciated.

 

[CoryMack]

Brother with all due respect why would you bring something that serious in nature here? So a buncha mufukkas who just celebrated a two week anniversary without “fapping” can pretend to be experts?

Find a professional in your city with verifiable credentials who knows what they’re talking about.

 

[invalid]

Brother with all due respect why would you bring something that serious in nature here? So a buncha mufukkas who just celebrated a two week anniversary without “fapping” can pretend to be experts?

Find a professional in your city with verifiable credentials who knows what they’re talking about.

I'm just trying to exhaust all avenues. There are some smart people on here.

I've already asked a few seasoned realtors and their response is that they simply don't know because they've never encountered a situation like this before.

And I don't know any real estate lawyers but will be sending to some of my lawyer buddies to get some recommendations.

The Coli has a few legitimate lawyers and real estate professionals so they may be able to offer some sound advice.

 

[Luke Cage]

Not a lawer, but it sounds like they no longer own the house if its up for sale and you bought it. will or no will.
I can leave my son Jada in my will but unless the actual Will Smith gives the okay it won't happen.

 

[the artist known az]

Do you have their attorney's info? They have to have a copy of the will

 

[EBK String]

Illiniois is a notice statute state, so if a buyer doesn't have notice of a prior conflicting interest in a property and buys it and records the deed they will be the rightful owner. However, you are aware of a possible conflicting interest.

you would need to speak to an Attorney for all the intricacies.

 

[sayyestothis]

Its rightfully the sons until its proven its not...

He could contest you stepping in at any time especially if the will was not registered.

 

[Atlrocafella]

Brother with all due respect why would you bring something that serious in nature here? So a buncha mufukkas who just celebrated a two week anniversary without “fapping” can pretend to be experts?

Find a professional in your city with verifiable credentials who knows what they’re talking about.

although this is funny, there are some real professionals on here who could provide solid advice for free.

 

[dark_magic]

Ok here's the dilemma.

Aunt and Uncle passed away in 2016.

They have a total of five properties in:
1) Chicago Sub
2) Tampa Sub
3) Philly Sub
4) Jamaica
5) Hawaii

Before they passed away, they had been staying full-time at their Tampa residence. Additionally, their estranged son (my cousin), who was homeless at one point, came to look after them in Tampa. I think he came to help in hopes of inheriting their estate when they died.

Ok. So they died and had a will.

He's the only one that knows what's in the will.

And he has failed to report that my aunt and uncle passed away.

The prevailing thought is that they left him nothing and willed away their Jamaican residence to a Jamaican orphanage they were benefactors of for many years. This assumption is based off of verbal conversations that they had with other relatives in a year or so before they died.

Using this assumption, we think that they willed their other residences away to other organizations, including their Chicago suburban house, which may have been willed to a local church.

But we don't know what's in the will and my cousin won't divulge because he's currently living in their Florida house and still has access to their bank accounts. Divulging that they died means he would have to give all that up and go back to being homeless plus he's committing fraud.

Here is where I come in.

Taxes have not been paid on any of the residences except the one my cousin is staying in in Tampa. I have no idea what is happening with their other properties but the property here in Chicago is listed as being up for a tax sale. I just found this out driving past their old place and noticing the house not being occupied and in disrepair. Didn't even know that it was still in their name and no one took possession until I looked up the residence on the county website.

I am interested in having my trust buy up the taxes and take possession of the house before someone else bids on it. Would like to keep that property in our family. So after three years of paying the taxes on the residence, I then get conferred full ownership of the house.

The issue:

With the house still being in my aunt and uncle's name (because their son did not report their deaths), and because the property was not transferred to it's rightful owners or whoever it was willed to, if I pay the taxes and take possession and then ownership of the house, if within the next few years, the rightful owners get knowledge of the will and step forward, 1) who then is the rightful owner of the house?

2) If it's not me, would I be able to sale the house to the rightful owners at market rate? 3) If not, would I be able to recoup the taxes that I paid on the house and any and all upgrades that I made on the house in the interim?

When I put a bid in at the tax sale, I will not divulge my relationship to the owners. I will not divulge that they died. I'm simply a random buyer putting in a bid.

I have no interest in living in the house. I will fix it up to maybe rent out, or, give to my cousin in Tampa if he has to become homeless again, after all, it was his parents house. That, however, will look super suspect, like we concocted a plan for him to get his parents property despite not being in their will.

Any advice will be appreciated.

You have insider knowledge of the properties. You should take advantage of it. Conflict of interest wouldn't stop any cac, so why should it stop you?

I would gather the addresses and perform a title search on each property to root out any liens if any on the properties.

You also need to find out if those properties are in tax lien or tax deed states.

Find out when taxes are due for that county as well as when properties go into default because of taxes. Make the county assessor's office your friend. You'll want to learn a bit about the rules, laws, and terminology of the county concerning property taxes, liens, auctions, and foreclosures.
Have capital ready or hard money lenders on deck in order to pounce on the properties at auction. You'll want to research the rules of the auctions before hand.

I wouldn't setup any trust. Just buy them outright as yourself. If you absolutely must use some trust vehicle, use an LLC.

As to wills, a will is only an expression of the wishes of the deceased. The probate court has ultimate say over how property is dispersed. Furthermore, government and creditors will be paid first before beneficiaries receive a dime from the estate.

The owner of the home is who is titled on the deed. In the event of foreclosure of the home, title is forcibly transferred from the previous owner to the new owner. Whatever wishes expressed in any will by the previous owner becomes null and void concerning the realty, in my opinion.

Furthermore, conflict of interest has to be raised by a complaining party in court. Beyond that, the allegations would have to be proven as fact based on a given law or set of laws in a civil court proceeding, more than likely. If no one is complaining (or knows how to official raise a complaint), I wouldn't worry about it.

None of the above is to be construed as legal, financial, or real estate advice as a disclaimer. It is merely my unlicensed and unlearned opinion on the scenario which you have presented.

 

[The_Sheff]

If they had enough bread to own properties wouldnt they have had some sort of life insurance policy. Those require death certificates to cash in. How did y'all have funerals without reporting a death?

 

[Samori Toure]

In Illinois you can pay the taxes at a tax sale ("buy the taxes"). The owner will have a few years to redeem those taxes. I don't know how many years a person has to redeem those taxes, so you will have to check the statute. If the owner does not redeem the taxes then after a few years you will get something from the County Assessor or Recorder of Deeds (I forget the name of the document), which will allow you the opportunity to go to court and get a tax deed. So the property would belong to the person that pays the taxes after a few years of making those back tax payments, but make sure to make the bid and do the purchase at the tax sale. You can also buy the taxes from other parties that made previous successful bids at earlier tax sales.

Couple of things to remember is that if the owner pays taxes then you will get your money back with a stated rate of interest. The second thing to remember is that if your relatives had a mortgage on the property then the bank is probably paying the taxes and what you think might be a tax sale is actually steps towards foreclosure, because a bank can not actually enter into a property to foreclose until your relatives failed to cure the loan.

So you need to research to make sure that your aunt an uncle did not have a mortgage on that property.

 

[Consigliere]

Sounds like your cousin should beat your ass for plotting on his inheritance.

 

[invalid]

I don't know how many years a person has to redeem those taxes, so you will have to check the statute.

It's three years, mentioned in the OP.

The second thing to remember is that if your relatives had a mortgage on the property then the bank is probably paying the taxes and what you think might be a tax sale is actually steps towards foreclosure, because a bank can not actually enter into a property to foreclose until your relatives failed to cure the loan.

No mortgages. They paid off all of their properties years ago.

 

[invalid]

How did y'all have funerals without reporting a death?

They didn't have funerals. Their son buried them immediately per their wishes. They were well-to-do and so we wouldn't have needed insurance money for funeral cost. The son had access to their bank accounts to pay out of pocket without having to report their deaths.

 

[invalid]

I would gather the addresses and perform a title search on each property to root out any liens if any on the properties.

You also need to find out if those properties are in tax lien or tax deed states.

The property that is germane to me is the one located in my city. I have all the information on back taxes and what's owed and am prepared to pay them off.

I wouldn't setup any trust. Just buy them outright as yourself. If you absolutely must use some trust vehicle, use an LLC

I have trust already set up. I don't ever make acquisitions in my own name.

As to wills, a will is only an expression of the wishes of the deceased. The probate court has ultimate say over how property is dispersed. Furthermore, government and creditors will be paid first before beneficiaries receive a dime from the estate.

Outside of taxes, there isn't anything else owed to any other parties.

The owner of the home is who is titled on the deed. In the event of foreclosure of the home, title is forcibly transferred from the previous owner to the new owner. Whatever wishes expressed in any will by the previous owner becomes null and void

Not a foreclosure, the property is paid off. The name on the deed is my deceased uncle.

Furthermore, conflict of interest has to be raised by a complaining party in court. Beyond that, the allegations would have to be proven as fact based on a given law or set of laws in a civil court proceeding, more than likely. If no one is complaining (or knows how to official raise a complaint), I wouldn't worry about it.

Issue that I foresee is a "right to ownership" issue. If a will is notarized, it is a legally binding document.

So if the stated wishes are that there is a transfer of ownership upon the decedent date, then ownership legally transfers at the time of death. If there are no other legal issues around this, the probate court can't rule otherwise.

The problem is my cousin has not reported the deaths.

Now that I think about it, this sounds like an issue that a trust and estates lawyer would handle and I know a shyt ton of them.

I don't even know why I didn't think of sending this to them in the first place.