My father passed away April 17, of this year he left his home to my brother and myself. Recently I haved received medical bills for my father and they are wanting money. Can they have a lean put on the house for whats owed . thank you
Debbie Buckman

This is always difficult in an inheritance situation and I have dealt with many. For your one sibling it may be that they have that sentimental or emotional connection to your mother through the home, or simply wants to control the situation, but either way, most of the time, mom wouldn't want to just left her home sit there empty....She would want a family in there who would take care of it just as she had! Do you have this property for sale with an agent? And also where is the property located, with this information I can help get you some info on what the property should be bringing in as far as offers and a sale and possible appraisal! I will be more than happy to help, just let me know....Thanks!

It seems to me that the three children should have reached a decision before putting the property of for sale. If the one sibling wants $60,000 and is adamant about it, then, you either have to concede, which would mean the other two would take less, or put it on the market at a price where each of you would make $60K. Have a real estate agent do some comps for you to see if the property will bring what you need to satisfy net $180K. Best regards and good luck.

Also, thanks to all who have given their opinion.

The 1st offer was for 180,000, 15,000 higher than this last one. And, yes we have countered this last offer. He believes it is a fair offer We have exhausted every effort to be reasonable with this sibling. My original question was to see if there were any other options. To me my brother and I, is about moving on.
I know many people get in a situation like this when it comes to inheriting property, homes, etc. where one party does not go with the majority and I wanted to find out what they do. Is it fair for the minority in a situation to control the way the situation goes? That was basically my original question.

K Pat -

Well, it certainly seems like it is getting down to begging. I assume the sibling does not believe the appraiser because they were hired by the buyer. You could offer to pay for an appraiser that the sibling hires and let that be the final word. I would assume there would not be much difference.

Have you countered the offer? Even though there is another property the buyer is looking at, it may be this is the one the buyer really wants.

Of course, as Keith points out below , two offers with not even being on the market made be an indication that the property could pull a higher price. I am not sure what you and your agreeing sibling have to lose, if you say no to this offer, list and market the property.

If you can't convince the other sibling to take this offer ( I assume the first of the two was even lower?) then it may be time to take a chance in finding another buyer.

I think most agents would agree, in this market a bird in hand is better than two in the bush...

This is a tough one.

This buyer wants to buy the lake property for his son and wants to buy before summer. He made the offer a month ago, and put it in writing a week ago. he has been very patient understanding our situation. He is very familiar with the lake property in this area, and had our property appraised. It appraised with his appraiser for I believe 162,000. He is looking at another piece of property that he is going to buy if we do not accept his offer in 2 weeks.

K Pat -
Sounds like you have been persistent enough in your offers to this other sibling. Although I agree with others that say the best deal would be to take the deal, I am wondering if there is a way to buy time with this sibling and not lose the deal. Would this buyer consider a lease option? That would give an income and time to obtain the desired price. If the note is not due for x years but at the desired $185K price, could it work out as a win-win? Check with your agent on the appreciation for the area and see if it is possible.

I know it is not the best answer but trying to offer options.

CJ

Appreciate your response.
If marketed the way you are saying takes time and money and slight risk of sell or nor sell, which is something 2 of us do not want to do. We are ready after 2 years to end dealings with inheritance issues.
Taking the offer of 165 (appraised at 185 a year ago) would mean a "done deal".
Other lake property''s incomparison in the area have been selling in 160's. We are aware that someone could offer more if time permitted, but we feel (2 of us) 165,000, property "as is", all closing cost paid by seller is a fair offer.
The one sibling has said she would take 60,000 if we wanted to buy her out. But would not take it from the offer this man has given. (even though she offered to possibly buy us out at 50,00. each, which she decide not to.)
That's why I was seeking advice on where to go from here.
basically, in inheritance issues, when several people have inherited a house, property etc., and one party holds up a sell....what do people do?

K Pat
You have some good advice here based on your posts. The way I see it, you have a couple of options:
1. You are receiving offers without the property being listed or marketed. Does it stand to reason that if the property were to be marketed properly you might get more offers?
2. You are a family first and real estate owners second. I would suggest sitting down and talking about your goals and priorities. It sounds from your posts that you are involved in the sales aspect too soon. If I were advising you I would suggest determining before the property is sold what your collective wishes are, then hire someone to sell it. A third part could keep an eye on the business side of this transaction.

Sometimes when heris are trying to manage the sale of an asset they become so embroiled in the family emotions that they make errors in the sale. There is a saying in real estate that the worst seller is a Realtor selling their own property. Same applies to your situation. Everyone of the posts are advising you based on the transactional matters of the case.

What would happen if, after closing escrow, someone walked up to you and said 'I'd have offered you $190K"? I not saying it will happen, but it could. So I suggest that you invest some time in clarifying what the three of you want out of this. Then talk with a Realtor about what the market value might be. I have seen cases where the emotions overruled the business sense of transactions and properties sold for far less than market value because the heirs just wanted to get rid of the property.

Best of luck to you.

Question back at you. When was the property appraised for the $185,000 value? Was it the date of death value at the time your mother passed away for estate purposes or more recent? If the appraised value was determined prior to 2008, it is possible the value of the property has changed with the value trends in the market area. It may be wise to either have it reappraised to the current market value for a comparison to the offer received, or at least have a Realtor/Agent research viable comps of recent comparables sold and active comparable listings to provide an estimate of what they think it might sell for in the current market condition and trends of the area.

Thanks for all the clarifications.

I stand by my advice. It's a great offer. And you've certainly tried to accommodate your sibling. I almost suggested, in my previous response, the exact course of action you tried--offering her 1/3 of the higher amount, with you and the other sibling making up the difference, thus receiving less.

Rationally, there was no reason to turn down the first offer, or the offer you and your sibling made. In either case, she'd be receiving virtually the full third that the appraiser said the lot was worth. Now an offer's come in for a bit less, but all cash "as is." If the appraisal was reasonably accurate, you've gotten two very, very good offers.

Maybe you have to turn it around. Say to your sibling, "Hey, sib. I understand that you feel the property is worth more than $185,000. I sure hope it is. In fact, I'd like to make an offer to you that I think you'll really like. I'd like to sell my share to you for $60,000. Even if the property is only worth $185,000, then my share ought to be worth a third of that, or $61,666. But if you're right and it's worth, let's say, $200,000, then my share would be worth $66,667. But, really, I'd kind of like closure on this. So I'd be glad to sell you my share for $60,000, even though it may be worth more. And if someone comes along next week and wants to buy it for $200,000, that'll be terrific. You'll have gotten a fair price for mom's lot, and no one will be happier than me."

Try that. Maybe that'll work.

Good luck.

several other questions were asked:
1. This sibling was the executer of the will, but since this property has been probated to us, then her being executor of the will brings no baring on the case now (I don't think?)
2. She had mentioned that she wanted 60,000 out of the deal, but would not be in agreement to us giving her 60,000 and us taking less.
3. The man who made the offer to us has given us the offer in writing. In it he has given us 2 weeks. (He verbally offered it to us 3 weeks ago.)

FROM KP
My Mom passed away two years ago. She left a piece of lake property that in the original deed would be passed down to the siblings once Mom deceased. At that time, we all decided to sell once the deed was probated to us (2 of us live way out of town), and the title was clear in our names.
The lot is a mess as it has not been tended to in the last 10 years. (2 of us live out of town)
A year ago, the land appraised at 185,000. (Of course we all wanted to believe it was worth more)
We have not officially put the lot on the market but have had 2 offers.
One for 180,000 last fall, which 2 of us wanted to move on that offer. But at the 3rd sibling did not want to do anything then, thinking we could get more for the lot. In Jan., that guy was not interested.
We now have the offer for 165,000 cash, pay all additional cost at closing and take the property "as is". 2 of us want to take it. The sister in dispute wants to hold out again and wants to put the property on the market for 185,000.
We (2 other siblings) have offered her the following: to take the 165,000. and the 2 siblings would give her more than 1/3 rd of the deal (60,000.) and we would take less. She still refuses "saying that the buyer is giving a low end offer and she is not convinced we could not get more. I believe it is a matter of "control/power struggle with this sibling.
We have tried to give many facts to the opposing sibling, telling her that even it the lot sold for 185,000., there would be cost and we would not be getting not much more than the offer at hand. She has even said she might be willing to wait a year to sell. We ( other 2 siblings) want to get passed all of the inheritance issues and move on.

A couple of observations:

Your sibling probably has an emotional attachment to the property. Mediation is a good option. Hopefully, it won't come to this, but contact a lawyer; there are ways, legally, to accomplish the sale, too.

Also, if it was appraised at $185,000 at some time in the past, the appraisal, if done today, probably would be a bit lower. And although the appraisal took into consideration the condition of the house, a lot of little things (old wallpaper, old shag carpeting, bathrooms not updated since the 1950s) wouldn't really affect the appraisal much, but would be serious turn-offs for a retail buyer.

Personal advice here--and I make offers on just the type of property you're trying to sell: Take the offer immediately. If it was appraised at $185,000, if it's "a mess," if the offer is in "as is condition," and if the offer is for $165,000 cash, take it. Take it immediately. Look: It might well not appraise for $165,000 today. If it did, and you tried to sell retail, you'd have to worry about the buyer's financing. And you'd worry about the home inspection, the $1,800 chimney repair, the negotiations, the electrical upgrades, the radon test, the old water heater or removal of the oil tank...and on and on.

Persuade your sibling. Mention these points to him/her. Just do it before the person making the offer changes his mind or moves on.

Hope that helps.

Hello again. Thanks for coming back and giving us a little bit more background info. Sounds to me like you have already explored some of the solutions that I have suggested. I am wondering if it is possible that your sibling may have some emotional reasons for not wanting to part with this property. Based on the information that you shared with us about the condition of the property and the appraised value, it seems to me that the current all cash and "as is" offer is a good deal. I am curious to know how long ago the property was appraised. Usually people have a property appraised shortly after the death of the owner to establish the value of the property on the day of the death. If that's the case, your appraisal could be some 2 years old and perhaps your sibling is misguided by the dated appraised value.

I would again recommend that you seek to resolve this issue via mediation. A good mediator can get to the bottom of why your sibling refuses to sell and help the three of you find a solution that you all can live with. It's possible that your sibling is not aware herself why she is refusing. It doesn't sound like it's just about the money. If it's just a matter of price, ask her what she thinks the price should be and counter at that price (how about meeting in the middle of the asking price and the current offered price?) If your sibling is so confident that the property is worth more, maybe she'll be willing to pay out of her share if the property ends up selling for less than the current all cash offer. Right now she has the opportunity to get more than her fair share. If the property sells for less than $165,000, the difference should be coming out of her share and she should be responsible for the upkeep and taxes on the property from here on. Perhaps, if she realizes that holding out may cost her in the end, she'll change her mind. Again, I would try to get to the bottom of the refusal as it most likely is not really about the money. Good luck to you.

K Pat -

Was there a will? If so, was there an executor of the will? From a purely legal standpoint this may be the way the decision could be managed. Of course, the legal definition is not always the best decision for the family relationship. Of course, it always best to consult with a local professional.

What are the reasons the other sibling doesn't want to sell? Do they want the property? Think the price is too low? Is it simply sentimental/emotional reasons? There may be ways to make it a win-win if you know why they are reluctant. If it is about price, you could always counter the offer. If it is not that much difference in price and you really want to finalize the situation, maybe the two agreeing siblings would be willing to offer some of their proceeds to the third.

Whatever the decision, it is always sticky when dealing with family homes. It it comes down to selling the house or maintaining peace in the family and only the people involved can really decide what is best.

Good luck, these situations always cause a great deal of stress.

CJ

K Pat,
In these situations you can always petition the court to overule the remaining sibling if there is a majority voting for the sale. This is something you could check into. Although you are talking about the extreme answer. I am sure your sibling would not be happy about it. Who knows if informed they may cave in. I had a similar situation years ago with some commercial property. Out of five, four of us were ready to sell and a cousin was holding out. So I would try to work it out if not you do have options. I would consult my attorney to get the exact verbage and tell them that we can do this it is up to you.

Larry Story
Coldwell Banker Triad

First we had all agreed to sell. We had it appraised at 185,000. The property right now is a mess, nothing has been done to it. We had an offer come at 165,000 cash, property "as is", and he will pay all cost at closing. Two of us want to take the offer and be done with it. The opposing sibling wants to hold out for more 185,000 because she thinks the man is offering a low end price. My brother and i think that it is a fair offer, and we would are ready to end all the dealing of the inheritance. We have offered to give her her 60,000 and us take less, but she is refusing to do that.

That's a tough one. It's not clear to me whether all three of you agreed to put the property on the market at a certain price or whether someone just came along and made an offer on the property and one of you just does not want to sell the property at all. Perhaps all three of you agreed to sell at a certain price, but the offer came in lower than that agreed price. If there's no agreement among the three of you to sell at any particular price, countering the current offer is not an option. If you have an agreement regarding the price at which all three of you would be willing to sell, then counter back at that price.

The two siblings who agree could split the difference between the offered price and the agreed price and give the sibling that's holding out more. For instance, if the agreed price was $100,000 and the offer is for $90,000, you could each give up $5,000 or you could agree to pay the amount over a number of years. What you are willing to do to make it work will depend on how badly you want to sell. If you don't sell the property, what will you do with it? Who will maintain the property if you don't sell? Is the other sibling willing to pay 100% of the taxes and maintenance if the property does not sell because he/she does agree to sell it at the offered price? The way I see it, you can either offer to compromise to get the refusing sibling to accept the offer and sell, do nothing and keep the property or file an action to force the sale if you absolutely want to sell. Before you file an action, I'd highly recommend that you try mediation first to preserve the relationship with your sibling. Litigation has tends to harm family relationships and it's expensive. Good luck to you.