Legal Question in Wills and Trusts in California

You can write a letter to the executor of the will and tell that person you do not want your inheritance. It is call a disclaimer letter.

That is very generous of you. You can simply disclaim your inheritance. You should do it in a writing signed and notarized. Since your mother had a Will, the Executor should hire an attorney to start a Probate. If you are named as Executor you can decline and let your sister do that too. The attorney can then help with the Probate procedures and when the Estate is ready for Final Distribution, the disclaimer document would be filed along with the Petition.

You may disclaim your interest in the estate (or part of the estate) within 9 mos of the date of death, but depending on what the will says, that may result in your interest going to your children (if any.) You can gift your 1/2 to your sister but that will result in a partial reassessment of the real property (not a big problem if she plans to sell fairly soon.) One possibility (if she doesn't want to sell) would be co-owning the house with your sister, letting her continue to live there, and leaving your share to her in your own will or trust (she'd be reassessed on 1/2 if she inherited, but while you are alive the property taxes wouldn't go up.) You should consult an attorney, who will be able to advise you after reviewing the will and other relevant documents, and asking the right questions about your and your sister's financial and family situations.

As stated above be careful with the "disclaimer." That may work but may not. You can simply "assign" your share to your sister. We do this all the time in probate cases. It's very easy and in most cases there are no tax consequences. However, it is important to talk the situation through with an attorney. If a probate attorney is needed I handle a large number of probate cases throughout California. -John