Legal Question in Wills and Trusts in Pennsylvania

It depends on how the real estate is titled. If the legal owner is the deceased, it goes according to the will. If the legal owner is the trust, it is part of the trust, again depending on what kind of trust.

If you are the beneficiary in either case, you should consult with a trust and estates lawyer in the county where the property is located and/or where the deceased resided.

THIS RESPONSE IS NOT LEGAL ADVICE, SINCE I DO NOT HAVE ALL OF THE INFORMATION THAT WOULD BE REQUIRED, AND I DO NOT HAVE A REPRESENTATION AGREEMENT WITH YOU.

* If the answers to your question confirm that you have a valid issue or worthwhile claim, your next step should almost always be to establish a dialog with a lawyer who can provide specific advice to you. Contact a lawyer in your county or township.

* Another reason for contacting a lawyer is that it is often impossible to give a good answer in the Internet Q&A format without having more information. The unique circumstances of your situation and things that you may not have thought to mention in your question may completely change the answer. If you want to be sure that you have a complete answer to your question and an understanding of what that answer means, establish a connection with a lawyer who practices in the area of your concern.

If this was done properly, the will and trust should have been done together. Typically, the trust is created and at the same time what is called a "pour-over" will is created. The purpose of the trust is to convey big ticket items (and other things, depending on how the trust is drawn) to the trust. This requires re-titling of assets like cars and making a new deed regarding the land to reflect that the land is now owned by the trust. The will is there to catch any assets that are not included in the trust and to "pour'over" any assets into the trust upon death which were left out, either deliberately or not.

You ask about land. The simplest thing is to see who is listed as the grantee on the deed. If the deed lists the trust as owner, then the property will be disposed of as per the terms of the trust. If the trust was drawn up but the settlor who made the trust forgot to or deliberately chose not to include the land in the trust, then the terms of the will may govern. Assuming that there are no claims against the estate and the land does not have to be sold for any reason, then he will could provide that the land pours-over back into the trust and distributed as per the trust. If the will was not a pour-over will, then you would still need to look at the deed and see whether the trust is or is not the owner. If not, then the land would probably pass as directed in the will.

The only wrinkle might be if the land was owned as a tenancy by the entireties or joint tenancy with right of survivorship. In either case, the land would pass to the surviving person on the deed automatically if the land was not owned by the trust.

Bottom line, you need to have the will, complete trust and the most recent deed to the land reviewed by an attorney experienced in estates & trusts or probate/estate planning to know for certain who gets the land.