When a family member dies, loved ones usually gather to offer a warm remembrance and to celebrate the life they once lived. However, sometimes the death of a family member can open a legal can of worms, especially when there’s a verbal agreement over an inheritance.
Sadly, Reddit user @humble_piano1768 finds themselves in the second situation, after they say their great uncle died without a will, leaving their future murky. The OP says that the root of the problem comes from the fact that they were raised by their great aunt and great uncle, a brother and sister duo who never married and decided to live together as they grew older.
After the death of the OP’s great uncle, the family home was supposed to be passed down to the great aunt until the time of her death, when it would then belong to the OP. But now that the funeral is over and the family is working on the logistics, the OP says that someone else is staking a claim on the property.
Now, they are turning to Reddit for advice to find out exactly what their rights are and how they are supposed to feel after having the rug pulled out from under them.
The OP’s Uncle Died Unexpectedly and Without a Will
According to the post, which was shared in the Family Drama subreddit, the OP was looking for a gut check and some advice after someone named “Aunt C” showed up to ask about the late great uncle’s assets. “Because he didn’t leave a will, legally his assets must be split between his remaining siblings (which, at this point, is only my great aunt who he lived with) and the children of his siblings (of which there are many),” the OP wrote. “This includes the house my great aunt still lives in. The only way for her to keep the house that she has lived in for 60 years is if everyone, or at least most, who are legally entitled to a share sign away their share to her.”
However Aunt C doesn’t think that the great aunt should get the house or the other assets, and instead has suggested that the remaining family members sign a waiver allowing the great aunt to continue to live in the house until she passes away, at which time the property will then go to the remaining family members, not the OP.
“I’ll lose the people who acted as my father, my mother, and my home the moment my great aunt dies,” the OP wrote. “I know my great aunt is stressed over this, and feeling hurt and insulted. She did always treat them well, as well as she treated anyone in the family who didn’t directly live with her.”
People Mostly Had the Same Advice
The post got a lot of attention, and people were quick to share their thoughts about the situation. Mostly they advised the OP to have her great aunt get in touch with a lawyer.
“There’s a lot of questions. How is the deed on the house drawn up? Who paid for the house originally? Has your great Aunt consulted an estate attorney,” one commenter wrote.
“The great aunt should be able to put a claim in as she has lived there her whole life (I can’t remember the phrase),” another person added.
However, when it comes to whether the OP actually has an eventual claim on the house, responses were mixed.
“OP doesn’t seem to be legally entitled to the house,” another person wrote. “Her great uncle never drew up a will, and that’s on him. He is the one at fault here. He should have done a will after the first broken hip. The holdout niece is entirely within her legal rights to claim her inheritance.”
Sadly, it seems like this will have to play out in the courts. However, it does raise an important point about the value of wills and how they can help protect your wishes after you’re gone.