| cloudcaptain | 27 Mar 2017 7:39 a.m. PST |
My father passed recently and did not leave a will. I am the sole heir to his estate. It consists of a small trailer and parcel of land worth less than 150k total. Union county. My goal is to pass the property to his girlfriend of 16 years. However, Dad's death left us tapped out financially and everyone is telling us we need to talk to a lawyer about Probating the estate. That seems contrary to everything I have read about being the sole heir in Georgia. The Probate court says they cannot tell me what petition to sign. If anyone is familiar with this situation and could advise me what direction to proceed in, I could barter remote tech support (I am senior server engineer at my consulting firm) or 28mm minis as would fit your requirements. Thanks! meustrader at Hotmail dotte com |
| Andrew Walters | 27 Mar 2017 9:43 a.m. PST |
Spending $200 USD or $500 USD to talk to a lawyer who knows the state law could save you tens of thousands. I am sympathetic to "tapped out", but the risk is immense. You could also look for free legal aid. There are a lot of organizations that try to provide low cost/no cost legal advice to various groups. You or your dad's girlfriend my fall into one of those groups. Good luck! I'm sorry for your loss. |
| cloudcaptain | 27 Mar 2017 9:47 a.m. PST |
Thanks Andrew! Will throw a fire sale and see about talking to an attorney. |
| Winston Smith | 27 Mar 2017 9:51 a.m. PST |
Laws are written by lawyers so that you have to see a lawyer to tell you what they mean. |
| Waco Joe | 27 Mar 2017 10:16 a.m. PST |
I have been through a similar problem in Texas. While the law is clear possibly for the estate to pass to you, should you wish to give or sell it to a third party the paperwork becomes a mess. There is often a time limit for probating an intestate inheritance and after that it becomes even more tangled. Pay a little (relative) now or pay more later. |
Ed Mohrmann  | 27 Mar 2017 10:43 a.m. PST |
My ex-FiL also died intestate (and he knew that his liver
was failing [alcohol] and refused to write a will). NC law is clear on division of property in those cases,
but we paid the attorney upfront to make really sure
who was supposed to get what, mostly because in the case
of the home, which he and his wife owned free and
clear, while the ownership was pretty straight forward,
the tax liability was not. I suspect the same may be true of your father's estate.
Best to find out before you burden your Dad's girlfriend
with a tax liability she may not be able to handle. I don't care for attorneys most of the time, but they
do have their uses, especially in cases such as this one. Condolences on your loss. |
 StoneMtnMinis | 27 Mar 2017 10:59 a.m. PST |
You need to talk to an atty who specializes in RE law. It is different from your normal run-of-the-mill legal situations because of the tax considerations and any right of survivorship issues. |
| Andrew Walters | 27 Mar 2017 7:08 p.m. PST |
Moral of the story for the rest of us, get that will written, even if you have unpainted lead… |
| coryfromMissoula | 27 Mar 2017 11:24 p.m. PST |
It is not just an attorney you need to talk to. Improper handling of the distribution can trigger income and capital gains taxes even when there are no estate taxes. You should also talk to an accountant. Be up front about money, many will give you a period to pay. Also check for state or county aging service agencies. They can point you in the right direction. |
| cloudcaptain | 29 Mar 2017 7:10 a.m. PST |
Thanks all…I appreciate the guidance. |
