Father and Uncle Own home in which father and I live, father's health declining

[SStrauss]

My father and uncle jointly own the home they inherited from my grandmother. My father's physical and mental health has been deteriorating for some time and I reside at the house with him where I have been helping him. There is no will at this time and I am concerned about what will happen when my father passes. My uncle owns a home of his own so does not reside with my father and me but relations between my uncle and I have been strained for years and I'm concerned about what will happen once my father is no longer in the picture.

Obviously we need to get a will in order but circumstances make it difficult. Without a will, will my father's half of the ownership fall to me when the time comes? I have one younger brother as well, and I know my father means for his half the house to be inherited by both of us which is not an issue as we're (my brother and I) are more concerned with my uncle attempting to take full control of the house than any unlikely conflict between us.

Thank you in advance for any advice you can give me.

 

[army judge]

My father and uncle jointly own the home they inherited from my grandmother. My father's physical and mental health has been deteriorating for some time and I reside at the house with him where I have been helping him. There is no will at this time and I am concerned about what will happen when my father passes. My uncle owns a home of his own so does not reside with my father and me but relations between my uncle and I have been strained for years and I'm concerned about what will happen once my father is no longer in the picture.

Obviously we need to get a will in order but circumstances make it difficult. Without a will, will my father's half of the ownership fall to me when the time comes? I have one younger brother as well, and I know my father means for his half the house to be inherited by both of us which is not an issue as we're (my brother and I) are more concerned with my uncle attempting to take full control of the house than any unlikely conflict between us.

Thank you in advance for any advice you can give me.

No will, no problem.

Why?

The laws of intestacy will then be applied to you.

Dying Without a Will or Trust

If a California resident dies without a will or trust, they die "intestate" and the laws of intestate succession are used to determine who will inherit the estate. Determining the heirs of the estate involves answering a series of questions about the person who died. The following discussion applies only to California residents and the intestate succession law of other states may be different.

1. The first question is whether the decedent (the person who died) was married.

A. If the decedent was not married, the estate is distributed as follows:
1. To the decedent's children, who take in equal shares if they are in the same generation.
2. If there are no children or other issue (issue is the legal term for children, grandchildren, great-grandchildren, etc.) living, the estate goes to the decedent's parents.
3. If there are no parents living, the estate is distributed to the "issue of the parents." If the decedent had brothers or sisters, they will inherit the estate. If there are deceased brothers and sisters, and they had issue, the issue will inherit the share of the estate that the deceased brother or sister would have inherited.
4. If there are no brothers or sisters, the decedent's grandparents will inherit the estate.
5. If there are no living grandparents, then the "issue of the grandparents" will inherit the estate. This could include the decedent's aunts and uncles, or if there aren't any aunts and uncles, the decedent's cousins. Generally, the oldest generation that has surviving issue will inherit, but if there are deceased issue in that generation, their issue will inherit their share.
6. If there are no cousins, Probate Code section 6402 provides that the estate will be distributed to "next of kin in equal degree," generally meaning more distant cousins.


http://www.ca-trusts.com/intestate.html


Here, read all about it:


http://www.ca-trusts.com/intestate.html

http://www.enotes.com/estate-planning-reference/intestacy

http://www.mystatewill.com/statutes/ca_law.htm

 

[SStrauss]

Thank you for the explanation. This is very reassuring and helpful.

 

[army judge]

Thank you for the explanation. This is very reassuring and helpful.

Why, you are more than welcome.

But, let's pray that your dad is here for many more years to come.

 

[disagreeable]

Also relevant is how the house is titled. If it is titled with a survivor deed, your uncle may still get it.