Legal Question in Wills and Trusts in Minnesota

My sister was single with no children and died unexpectedly in an accident back in 2008. I became executor of her estate, for which there is no money.

At the time of her death, she had a mortgage and credit card debt. I live in the same state that her home is in but in a different city. Her mortgage company has been hounding me for the past 5 years even though I have no ties to this property. We had originally obtained a probate attorney who notified creditors and did an inventory of the estate. We had even sent a cease and desist letter to the mortgage company.

This house has remained vacant all of this time, and the mortgage company has now sent me a letter stating they are willing to "settle" for $47,000. The house is worth around $140,000. The exact condition, having been vacant, is unknown, but I personally shut the water off shortly after her death. The house is well known to me and had been kept up prior to her death. I am also capable of doing most repairs myself. I even called the city to find out about back taxes, and it turns out that the mortgage company/escrow has been paying the taxes for the past 5 years (seriously!).

My question is: Should we purchase this property as a real estate investment, i.e. rental property or flip it, or not get involved at all and just let it go? I hate to let an opportunity of real estate slip by, but then again I don't want to open a can of worms by getting tangled up in the unsettled estate issues. I am looking at this opportunity as a big part of my retirement plan. I am currently 49 years old.

I would greatly appreciate your advise. Thank you.

1 Answer from Attorneys

Related Questions & Answers

More Probate, Trusts, Wills & Estates questions and answers in Minnesota

Looking for something else?