As we age, our parents are aging and at some point they will both pass on, most likely leaving a home to their children. Situations like this can get sticky when there are multiple siblings inheriting the house. There are many personality traits that may come out, some of the siblings may want to take complete control, leaving the others out of the decision process, thus creating bruised feelings and stress relationships. We all want to have harmony at Thanksgiving dinner and Christmas, so having a plan of action is the first step to a smooth process. Here are some tips, some are a little harsh but needed, to getting that plan going with ease.- Make sure taxes, insurance, and mortgages are being paid.
- Wait 30 days before making any decisions – giving everyone time to grieve and detach feelings.
- Make sure to keep everyone equal partners. (Leave spouses out of the equation, that can sometime create conflict with siblings).
- Make sure to meet in a neutral location. This may sound odd but meeting at one siblings home may intimidate others.
- Pick a specific date to get the house on the market.
- Have a couple real estate professionals come do market analysis on the home to get a real market value. This will help you understand what the home is actually worth in today's market.
- Make list of repairs that need to be made to the home. Using a inspector’s checklist will help make sure you get the essentials taken care of.
- You'll also want to make a list of purely aesthetic things that need to be done to increase curb appeal.
- Keep track of the expenses of the projects so that everyone get reimbursed for what they have bought after the sale.
Sad to say, but if there are any adult siblings living in the home, you should be collecting rent from them until the house sells, even if your parents had let them live rent free, as this tips the scales of being equal partners.
In the case that one sibling wants to purchase the home, they should be treated the same as an outside buyer, having to pay fair market value to the estate, minus their percentage of the whole purchase price.
None of us wants to go through loosing loved ones then having to deal with the sale of a home. Remember through the whole process that your partners in this are your family and are going through the same lose as you.
Here are some other great articles that may help you in the process:
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