Legal Question in Wills and Trusts in New York
My mother left house in New York State to me and my brother. He lives there and I want to move in in a few months. He now announces that he doesn't want to live with his sister. It's a three bedroom, 2 full bathroom house, with ample room for both of us to live in. I'm Executor of the Will, and both our names are on the Deed as joint tenants with right of survivorship. It was not my mother's intent for him not to allow me to live there after her death. I visited her daily and bathed and dressed her, cleaned the house, washed their clothes daily and did all the grocery shopping. Should I settle with him and take half the value of the house? He's foolish because I would pay half of the expenses to run the house and do all the housework. Because he lived with my parents his entire life, he has saved thousands of dollars and can afford to live there by himself. I, on the other hand, would not want to pay all the home expenses by myself. My parents would never believe that my brother would pull a stunt like this.
2 Answers from Attorneys
Regrettably this happens often in situations as this. You have a few options you may buy his half out or force a sale. Sit down with an attorney to discuss your options.
If he is prepared to pay you one-half of the house's true value, you may wish to accept that, as you can not force him to share the house with you.
If he refuses, you may have to go to court to get a judicial order for partition, which involves a sale of the house and sharing of the net proceeds.
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