Does anyone here understand contract law for property, and how it works after death?

[DaVinci]

I inherited a piece of property from my father who passed away this year. He had made a divorce agreement with my mom years ago that when the property sold he would give her half the money from the sale. Is this still valid despite the fact that he died and I inhereited the property? If I sell it do I owe her half the money?

[Magnus]

 

I inherited a piece of property from my father who passed away this year. He had made a divorce agreement with my mom years ago that when the property sold he would give her half the money from the sale. Is this still valid despite the fact that he died and I inhereited the property? If I sell it do I owe her half the money?

 

You need to hire a lawyer to answer this question. 

In the most general terms, your mom may have the right to enforce the contract if she has complied with certain requirements. First, it depends on exactly what the contract says.

Second, you should understand that the property passed first to your father's estate upon his death. Thats's a fictional, abstract owner of everything he owned, which opens when an estate case is filed, and closes when it has done all its business of disposing of the property.  Her claim to the property may properly directed against the estate, not just you. In some jurisdictions, the creditors of an estate are required to file a claim in the estate case in order to retain their claimed rights in its property, before it is distributed to the heirs. That requirement may depend on whether the estate was filed properly and whether she was notified properly. You should check to see what the estate filings say. 

Third, she may have recorded her claim on the property as a lien, in the county property records. Since the contract was made pursuant to a divorce, my guess is that the usual, correct thing to do would have been to record her rights via a deed, mortgage, or something, as part of the divorce settlement. You'd have to check both the property recording office and the divorce court file. 

So, short answer: maybe. 

[DaVinci]

 

 

I inherited a piece of property from my father who passed away this year. He had made a divorce agreement with my mom years ago that when the property sold he would give her half the money from the sale. Is this still valid despite the fact that he died and I inhereited the property? If I sell it do I owe her half the money?

 

You need to hire a lawyer to answer this question. 

In the most general terms, your mom may have the right to enforce the contract if she has complied with certain requirements. First, it depends on exactly what the contract says.

Second, you should understand that the property passed first to your father's estate upon his death. Thats's a fictional, abstract owner of everything he owned, which opens when an estate case is filed, and closes when it has done all its business of disposing of the property.  Her claim to the property may properly directed against the estate, not just you. In some jurisdictions, the creditors of an estate are required to file a claim in the estate case in order to retain their claimed rights in its property, before it is distributed to the heirs. That requirement may depend on whether the estate was filed properly and whether she was notified properly. You should check to see what the estate filings say. 

Third, she may have recorded her claim on the property as a lien, in the county property records. Since the contract was made pursuant to a divorce, my guess is that the usual, correct thing to do would have been to record her rights via a deed, mortgage, or something, as part of the divorce settlement. You'd have to check both the property recording office and the divorce court file. 

So, short answer: maybe. 

 

Thanks for the resposne. I wasn't sure if any of this divorce agreement held up consdiering she has been married and divorced to another man since then, or what his death meant to the agreement. The house is in my name now and I didn't know how that would impact selling it. I actually gave the divorce agreement to a lawyer when dealing with my dads death but I don't think they ever really looked at it.