Full question:
My father put my sister and me on a general warranty deed with reservation of life estate in October 2001. However, we have 4 other brothers and sisters that we were told to share this property with. Why he only put two names on the deed is beyond me! He is still living (age 88 and still going about his business). Is it possible for my sister and me to add our other brothers and sisters to this thing? Or are we going to be faced with big problems someday trying to share this with out siblings? We are talking about 320 acres of farmland, with three homes each at least 100 years old.
- Category: Real Property
- Subcategory: Joint Tenants
- Date:
- State: Ohio
Answer:
It is possible, with the father's consent to add the siblings to the deed. Whether problems will arise depends on the circumstances under which the promise to convey the property were made. If it were a promise to make a gift, not based on a contract for something received in return, then it can be freely revoked before the gift is made. A person who takes possession of the property when the life estate ends is called a remainderman. The remaindermen can only sell their remainder interest - and not the life estate holder's present interest - without that person's consent. The remainderman can:
- sell his or her interest in the property even before the life estate interest terminates if allowed by the legal instrument establishing the life estate interest. In such cases, the life estate owner retains the life estate interest until the life estate terminates.
- transfer the property with the permission of the life estate owner.
Please see also:
http://www.wpar.org/main/link_to_file?file_name=JUNE20.pdf&file_path=%2Fhome%2Fwpar%2Fwpar%2Flibrary%2Flegal_articles%2Flglart07%2F
This content is for informational purposes only and is not legal advice. Legal statutes mentioned reflect the law at the time the content was written and may no longer be current. Always verify the latest version of the law before relying on it.
