Can I legally evict my brother?

[inquisitive]

I co-signed a loan for my mother to refinance her home. She is now deceased and my 45 year old brother took over the mortgage payments and lives in the home now. Because my name is on the loan, the mortgage company notified me that my brother has not been making the payments on a modified arrangement that he had made with them. My wife and I can pay the back owed payments, but if we do, we will have to move into the house as we would not be able to afford both residences. He is very hostile and will not allow us to move in, because that means he will have to move out. Because my name is on the loan, can I legally evict him?

 

[mightymoose]

Whose name is on the deed to the property?
This sounds like something that should have been straightened out when your mother passed.
You can evict your brother if you are the legal owner. You might have to straighten out the ownership first.

 

[CdwJava]

Who OWNS the home? As MM asked, whose name is on the deed; in other words, who inherited the house? Is it shared? Your name being on the loan will not give you any rights to evict anyone. You might have grounds for a civil suit if he isn't making payments, but unless your name is on the deed, or you have some other contractual arrangement that grants you the right to evict him or take other action, you may be out of luck.

Also, the state DOES matter. Different states have different rules on how the eviction process works.