I need some advice. My mom passed away in January and left her home to me and my sister. She still owe’s $200k on her home and my sister ultimately wants me to buy her out cause she doesn’t want it. My husband and I were in the middle of buying a brand new home when my mom passed away so now we have two homes and I don’t know if I should 1. Sell my mom’s house OR 2. Pay off my mom’s house with her retirement and rent it out. This is hard because I feel emotionally attached to her house but I need to make the best money move. What would you do?
My mom passed away and now I don’t know what to do with her home.
Deep wisdom here. Heed it.
I went through a similar decision and I don’t regret selling one bit. I would have been devastated if a renter had wrecked that house. Instead, we sold to an older couple and I get to feel joy when I occasionally pass by and think on the memories from there.
She also does not want to be a landlord. Sell now.
I'm feeling anxiety just reading that. What a nightmare, no possible way it would go well. I've seen too many horror pics of rental nightmares.
THIS!!! THIS!!! THIS!!!! Not only do you not want to be attached to a rental, but I can guarantee that if you make anything off the property that your sister will decide you ripped her off and the bad blood will never be healed. I've seen too much fighting over parent's properties. None of it rational or reasonable.
Agreed. Renters don’t love things like you do and you’ll take it personally when they do something you don’t like.
Oh that's actually a really nice piece of wisdom. I never would have thought of that but it makes sense.
Yeah, i keep thinking about renting out my little house when I leave because I love it so I wouldn't want to sell it. This is a super interesting take on it. Sobering.
Have you ever managed a property before? How well do you get along with your sister?
Agree, a rental is a rental.
Or keep it and rent it to a friend or relative.
Might was well break rule #1 and rule #2 while you are at it.
Edit:
Apparently people need the /s to see the sarcasm. I thought it was pretty clear. Obviously do not rent a house you love, and do not rent to a friend or relative.
LOL you got a laugh from me at least
Take a great personal relationship and introduce a business component into it…. That’s a NO. Evicting your friend or a relative… hard pass. Hard enough to evict a stranger.
If it were me, I'd sell it as is, take what you make on it and pay down your own mortgage as much as possible.
Thank you for the advice. I appreciate the honesty and idea of paying down our own mortgage.
Please talk to a financial planner. I would definitely sell, because of all of the reasons given by the other posters. But use the money from the sale wisely.
This house is your inheritance, and therefore what you do with it should be used wisely. Once it goes into you home, it could become communal marital property. You won’t fully get that money back if you and your husband divorce, etc.
Not to mention, it is always wise to have emergency savings on hand. Always.
And if OP’s mortgage has a super low rate, it’s better to put the $ in high yield savings than to pay down mortgage.
They bought in January so it probably doesn’t.
Thx! Missed that detail.
Inheritance kept separately is yours 100% in a divorce. Don't comingle the money. Put it in a high yield savings or something like that. If you ever need to leave you'll be able to.
My understanding is… not a attorney but before you do anything with the money you need to think about the fact that once you put it into your home or any other joint owned marital asset it becomes community property. Not to be negative but definitely something to consider when inheriting money. If you keep it separate it is yours and yours alone.
As an attorney, I second this.
You can use it as you see fit... and comingle as much or as little as you want when purchases come up. But to co-mingle the whole amount right off the bat? Nope.
Even in the case of a happy marriage I would consider keeping it separate as if there were some extremely significant life events that keeping it separate would make sense. Thinking of medical or long term care for your spouse. Something you don’t necessarily think about when you are young but as you age it looms large.
my mother died a couple months ago, and i inherited a little over $500K. but, being married- i don't see it as "i" inherited it, but that "we" inherited it. that's just how it works when you're married.
I am happily married as well and everything is combined. Unfortunately some people are not all lucky and that’s something worth considering in certain circumstances. Just being practical.
Sadly this is true there are a lot of people just barely holding onto their marriage and this could be their out if they didn't have the means previously.
My wife and I are happily married (together 15 years) and we both acknowledge that anything can happen, even though we 100% trust each other right now.
A few years ago, her brother fell off his bike and got a bad concussion. He healed and was fine until a year later their grandmother died and the grief triggered a psychotic break. He was completely detached from reality, tried to give all his money away, and was convinced that their grandmother was speaking to him. He mostly recovered and can now work and live on his own but he went from being an atheist to converting to mormonism, and is now gun crazy because he’s obsessed with being safe.
We both miss the old him terribly and can’t stand to be around him anymore. TBIs can fuck a person up beyond repair.
Life can throw you a curve ball at any time. Best to have your mit ready.
If you pay down your mortgage with funds from the sale of your mother's house, be aware that you will be co-mingling your inheritance with marital assets, and if you should divorce, you won't get that money back in full. Half will go to your spouse.
User deleted comment
14d
We have a photo album of all the houses our family has lived in. I feel like I know places I've never been. It's a nice part of our story.
This is what I'd do, as well.
I don't know... based on her username, I'm assuming she is in California. They STILL don't know how to regulate the housing crisis there and it IS possible to lose money on a house. We bought a house for nearly $700K in California. Due to my career, we had to leave and return to the midwest. The only way out was a short sell. It sold for $250K... because that is what the market demanded. From what I understand, the cycle is repeating. Living in California is unsustainable.
California is the one state that I would absolutely NOT make early payments on a house unless you 110% knew it was going to be your "forever home".
If you sell, put it in some secure investments for retirement and lock it away. Maybe keep a portion available for your own home repairs.
It’s probably best to make an appointment with a fee-for-service financial planner and have them go over your specific situation.
If you're emotionally attached, then sell it to a family you'd love to see cherish it. Renters don't care as much about a property, and you could end up with someone who destroys the property. Having a rent home is a good way to make money but not with a property you're emotionally attached to imo.
Yeah. 🥺 that’s true. Thank you for the advice. I don’t think anyone could take care of her house as much as we would, unless it’s a family that I know will cherish it as much as we did. Thank you for the honesty.
I think sometimes buyers write letters to the owners!! See if you can get those
You should also take a video with your sister touring the house and tell stories about all the memories so you can show it to future generations
Letters to the seller is not as much of a thing anymore because it can introduce discrimination in the sale process. As a seller you're not supposed to know anything about a buyer except that they have the funds to buy your house.
I kind of wish it was a thing still. Might swing sellers to selling it to a real person who would live there rather than a random investor
While I understand the sentiment of "to a family that will cherish", you have to be very careful to avoid any anti-discrimination laws. It basically means you can only look at the numbers being offered and the contingencies. Fact of the matter... best to do a sale blindly. Once ownership transfers, that's it.
Since you asked what I'd do, I'd just sell it. There would be emotional loss there, but I wouldn't also have the job of landlord. Renting a house is a serious commitment, and it's not always profitable. I rent a family home to a family member and it's still work. I can have a heart to heart with my tenant about paint and gardening. I can't imagine having it with a stranger.
I'm sorry for your loss, and I hope whatever you do with the house works best for you and your family.
Thank you. Yes, that’s true. Being a landlord is a headache in itself and I don’t think anyone would take care of my moms house as good as me so long as we continue to own it. It would be hard seeing other people live in it in general.
I am in the sell it camp.
Think how happy it would make your mom to have a new family in her house raising kids and making memories.
I hear you. Hopefully it will become someone else's happy home. How are you holding up in general? Do you have the support you need?
First, sorry for your loss.
What's the interest rate on the home?
Is it an assumable loan?
How much is the home worth?
Do you have cash to buy out your sister?
You need to give a lot more details for us to give meaningful advice.
Interest rate is a 4.9% fixed. Mortgage is $1,495/month. Home was bought for $147k but is worth $325k so there’s equity on it. I am the beneficiary to my mom’s pension/retirement so depending on how much she had in there I could either pay off the house or buy my sister out. I’m not sure, I’m new to all of this and have never owned a home before until very recently.
I would pause, and consult a financial planner.
If your mom bought it for $147k, how can she still owe $200k on it?
She took out some equity on the home and redid the pool, added a carport, redid the roof and bought a new AC unit.
Oh, ok. Got it.
Sorry for your loss.
Thank you. 🥺
My mom hasn’t passed yet but we are making plans for when that day comes while she is still able to. The difference with us is her house is paid off, and there’s 3 of us. If no one wants the house, we’ll sell and split the profits. But if one of us wants it, the third will have to buy the other two out. Problem is, at fair market value, probably only one of us can afford it, and that’s the person that it makes least sense to buy.
Selling the family home is sad regardless of the situation. Good luck with your decision.
Sorry for your loss. Most loans you can not take over so likely you would need to refinance if you kept it. If you sold you would net around $125k minus commission and other selling costs. So if you need to buy out your sister that would need to be $60kish on top of a higher mortgage payment at today's rates. Also Medicaid could come after the house if your mom received any end of life care through them. So yeah lots of variables. You and your sister should definitely both talk to a financial planner together, if she wants to be bought out then she needs to do some leg work too, don't let all of this fall just on you.
My renters obliterated my first home... If you have any emotional attachment, then do not rent. It will be treated like garbage.
I agree. Everyone I know who rented out a beloved house had it trashed. Maybe not the first renter, but after a few you're probably going to get a bad one. Think about how hard it is to evict, the cost, and the stress.
Landlording if hard. It's harder with a house you have an emotional attachment to. Plus to keep it, you'll have to buy out your sister and still have a $200k mortgage. Id sell.
I assume you are doing a probated estate for your mothers estate. And you mention paying off the house with your mother's retirement. First some questions: Is the retirement part of the estate or is it distributed to beneficiaries? What is the FMV of the home? Is it close to where you live?
You have two obstacles to overcome with the house. 1.) Buying out your sisters 1/2 interest, which would be net of 1/2 of the mortgage and 2.) Taking over the mortgage and keeping the house. Do you have enough cash flow to accomplish all this?
You have to determine if financially this works for you (we don't have enough info). Plus taking on being a landlord.
Memories are hard to put away. But maybe a new family can be blessed to have a happy home like you remember.
Renters destroy houses. You got someone to fix it up? Okay watching mom's old house fall apart?
I'd sell it, but that's just me. Sentimental and not handy.
Let's take the emotion out of it.
1. sale value, minus any costs associated selling it.
2. Monthly rent you could earn x12 months and that's your annual earnings. Remember to take out expenses.
I try not to give advice but please consider a property manager if it's a rental unless you are good at dealing with renters.
And finally, I'm so sorry you lost your mother. Take your time making a decision.
Outlier...many people where I live are renting their homes as AirBnb. Are you in a location where that's an option that makes sense?
Sell it and split the money. Personally id put the inheritance into a money market savings that will earn you a decent percentage.
Sell your Mom's house. We bought the house I grew up in about 10 years ago. We rented it out for a few years and it is finally sold. It brought a lot of headaches and expenses. I understand the emotional attachment you have, but, it is a house it was the people in it that made it a home. The memories are yours forever.
The sister buyout is of the net of (the market value, minus the loan), half of that net.
This calculation is used frequently, and I don’t understand why. In this instance, why should the sister receive more on a buyout than she would receive if the home were sold?
Why would she get more if they sold, if it sold for the 325 sister would get 375 - 200 owed ÷ 2 (less because of selling costs)
If she gets paid out she gets the 325 - 200 owed ÷2
Interestingly, your sister will get more if you buy her out.
If you sell, there are alot of fees that will come off related to selling. Plus the work for you both to get it ready to sell. Might also not get the full amount. Plus carrying costs on insurance, etc..,
Sell her house and split it, move on.
I’m sorry for your loss.
Don’t pay off the house if you choose to rent it out. Instead, determine if rent will cover the mortgage, maintenance, and other expenses plus leave you some cash. If so, then just let the tenants pay the mortgage for you and put the retirement money towards something else, like your own mortgage or investments.
Family houses are too sentimental. Just sell it. Either direction is a financial windfall for you, but just because you make a decision now doesn't mean your sibling isn't upset with you in a year or whatever.
You can come to a financial resolution that preserves your relationship with your family, or defer that resolution until it inevitably blows up in your face. The only people who should inherit and keep family homes are only children in unique circumstances like inheriting 40 acres and a mule under circumstances less dire than a civil war. It's a high bar to clear.
Please talk with an estate attorney and tax specialist before deciding anything
If you sell, make sure sister knows you will be reimbursed from the sale for costs of any repairs, cleaning out the house, etc, before there's a split of proceeds. Just because the house sells for x don't mean that's what she gets half of, you have to pay the expenses of selling first.
Sell it. My mom died last year. Selling her house felt freeing and helped in my grieving process.
First dont buy your sister out - sell the home and after taxes / etc. have the mortgage company do a 50/50 split so its all fair and handled properly.
Speaking as someone who kept the parents house- sell it.
You may constantly want to change/improve the home while being torn about changing anything. Ultimately, you’ll spend too much time and money and it’ll never be what you remember it as.
Keep those memories. Make new ones elsewhere. Sell it and split it with sister.
Sell it.
Sell it, now you have two houses to roof eventually, and all the other fun that comes with owning a home, squatters… yuck.:)
If you are going to live in the house, you could keep it. Just ensure that it’s very clear to your sister or any other family members that once your sister is paid out, the house is 100% yours to change and live in as you choose. If you mum ever had any kind of open door policies, or regularly let people stay, and you don’t want the same arrangement, be prepared for people to push boundaries.
If you aren’t going to live in it, sell it. Buy a different property to invest with.
I am looking at the same situation, I thought it through before hand. I am going to air b & b my house and move into my mom’s house. The difference is I don’t have mortgage’s. I would never consider a rental with long term leasing contracts again, people destroy your property and it’s hard to get rid of them. One reason I am not selling is because the fiat dollar is collapsing, hanging on to property is the wisest financial investment right now. When the dollar collapses you will still have value in the property.
I was in this position with my sister. There was no question - it was the wrong location for her work and way too much house for me. We sold it. The house would not give us our mother back.
My sister and I inherited our father’s house together when he passed two years ago. I would echo the advice you’ve already received, you are better off selling it sooner than later. We held on to it longer than we should have and were both stuck paying that mortgage while also paying for our own housing. It drained a lot of money to not be able to let go. Edit: spelling
i never understood the whole buying your sibling out.
in any case, if i were in this position, id make the sibling that wanted a buy out to do all the work to sell it.
Sell it. Split the residual with Sis. Put your money away until you figure out how you want to use your inheritance.
Sell it and every now and then drive by wistfully if you need to, but definitely sell.
This is a business decision and your emotions have nothing to do with a house. If you cannot separate your emotions from this house, you will make very bad financial decisions.
You came here asking for advice about a financial decision.
To make a wise financial decision, remove the emotion.
An ounce of emotion in a financial decision = a pound of stupidity.
Pay it off and rent it out! You can always sell it later.
That’s tough. Take the items that will help soothe your emotions. The house has many memories in your heart. Financially you can rent it out but understand it will not be maintained with the love your mom gave it and it can become disheartening. If you sell it you’ll get short term gains. Depending on the location you may get higher returns or less. Look at chamber of commerce to look for upcoming businesses opening up or better development nearby that may increase the homes value. Good luck
Sell. Being a landlord is stressful at best, and financially devastating at its worst.
I was a landlord for 12 years, and was always a relatively small financial surprise from ruin.
Finders responsible renters is difficult. Based on my experience, I would sell and move on.
Sell.
You're attached to your mom and the memories. The house was always going to have to go to someone else.
Unless you always wanted to live there.
Think of it this way... if someone gave you 140 or 300k or whatever, would the first thing you'd want to do is buy your childhood home or buy a rental unit? Would those have been on your to-do list? Or would you have had other priorities for that money?
Sell. Houses are not keepsakes!
What would your mom want? I think the best advice is to sell the property and use the remainder for your own home. I get the emotional tie but if you end up paying two mortgages you'll be upside in debt and I'm sure that's not something your mother would have wanted.
Other option is to rent it out with a property management team. But I would go with option 1
Sell. Save yourself a ton of hassels, invest the money and give other people the chance to buy a home in this weird market. I just sold my mom's house, she passed 2 years ago right when I purchased my first home. A lot was going on at the time plus i lost my MIL within 6 months of my mom so I reallly dragged my heels. It was easier letting go once everything was out and I used some furniture for my house. Her memory lives with me wherever I am. I wish I had done it sooner. Now I have extra money (50k over asking and sold in about a week) and I can spend my energy on my new house.
sell the house, pay off the mortgage, split anything remaining with the sister.
Sell. Your emotional attachment problem will be worse if you have to watch a string of tenants slowly destroy the house than selling it off (hopefully up a good buyer that takes good care of it) and getting it over with.
i would rent my own home and move into my moms, i lost my mom when i was 16 my condolences 💐 to you. you could probably get more money for a brand new house anyways and you could slowly build moms house up and prepare it for the next homeowner slowly until you are ready to part ways with it
If you're in California, and you might consider living in the inherited home, you may be able to decrease your taxes to the tax basis of whatever your mom was paying instead of paying taxes on the full price of your current home. This only works if she was living there, and you decide to make it your permanent residence.
If you sell it now, you get to keep it in your memory as it was. If you rent it you get to watch it slowly degrade to something else.
When my father passed away his house was sold, and the profit was split between myself and my 3 sisters. That money from the house, which was by no means a huge amount, was enough to set me up to eliminate my mortgage and up my retirement savings. I am now retired, and I know that lump sum had was a big help in getting me here a few years early and a few dollars richer.
I would sell it and not have to deal with renters, they will trash the house
My husband had to deal with this when his mom passed away. His mom left him her house and savings. Being an only child, he didn't have a sibling to share the responsibility/ financial decisions, so he made them all himself. There was enough money in her savings to pay off the house. Since her interest rate was so low on the house, she never paid it off since her savings account made so much more money than the house interest rate. He paid the house off, remodeled it, and rented it out for a couple of years. He sold it after the Tennants moved out. Since they weren't nice to the house, he had to fix it up again, and this time, he sold it. By hanging onto it for so long, he actually sold it for double what it would have sold for before renting it out. So financially do whatever seems best, but put aside all the memories and think of it as a savings account instead of your family home. The hardest part is deciding what to do with everything. Take time, use the savings to pay it off, and take as much time as you need to process what you and your sister are going to do. Make sure you both are OK with the final decision. Otherwise, you might have a fight and be left heartbroken. My dad and his sisters got into so many arguments when my grandparents died, and they hardly talk to each other anymore. Same with our friend and his sister. Unfortunately, this is a moment that can make or break your bond.
I lost my mom at 23 and my childhood home of 22 years became my responsibility. If any part of you wants to and thinks it’s financially responsible to keep the house I would keep it. After the initial grief wears away (that’ll take years) you might wish you had it. I wish I still had that piece of my old life.
Sell it . Honestly renting it is just a headache in itself.
Stop saying ’home’. Your mom is gone and that hurts, I know, but that building is now just a house. Absentee landlord is no fun. Best to simplify, sell the house, use the money gained on the house you were planning to make a home.
Renting means you will still be emotionally connected to the house. It will become Something Else I Have To Do.
Sell it. And while you're prepping it to sell, you can emotionally detach from the house.
Sorry for your loss.
Rip off the band-aid. Sell.
Pay off and rent out …
I’d rent out your mom’s house for a year only if you can rent it to cover the mortgage , taxes, insurance and some liquid money for improvements . You might want time to come to the right decision for the property. In the meantime if meet with a cpa
Sell. Period
I would sell the house. And combine your share with pension/retirement proceeds and either a) invest it in a top rated mutual fund or b) pay down the new house mortgage. The choice of a or b is dependent on your unique financial situation. There is no one size fits all answer for that.
Being a landlord can be a headache. What condition is her house in? Are there likely to be a lot of repairs? If so, then I’d probably sell it.
Myself, I would sell the house that I'd just bought, but my sister out, and move into it. That's me, I am sentimental. You don't have any real memories collected in your new house, of any importance, you do with your mom's house.
Condolences on losing your mom. I had to navigate a similar situation recently (my dad died, leaving me my childhood home). No siblings and no partner, so I had to figure out what to do on my own. Hope you're doing okay.
I'm so sorry for your loss. I lost my mum suddenly 3 years ago and it has been life changing. I have been slowly going through everything in her house and fixing it up. I've been renting it out as a fully furnished home for 6 months-year at a time. It's been a huge headache. I live a 13 hour drive away and come back to the house in between tenants. So far I've had 2 tenants in a row that have damaged/broken a lot of stuff. It's been very disheartening and I'm getting burned out from it. I am thinking I might just empty it and rent it out long term to get the passive income. In our situation the mortgage is fully paid off though. One day I'll probably sell, but it's really hard to let go. I'm not ready yet.
First of all, so sorry for your loss. Can’t imagine how difficult it is to lose someone especially a mom.
Most parents wanted their children to inherit their homes and I understand the sentimental value of a house we grew up in. However, we also have to deal with our own situations and make the most reasonable decisions for ourselves. If I was in your shoes, I will look at all the options and talk to the ppl involved such as your husband and your sister. Communicate what’s best for all of you before finalizing a decision.
I definitely am open to help discuss options. I am a homebuyer myself, and I like homes as-is which means no repairs needed.
If you need help looking for options, please message me. 🙏🏼
Sorry for your loss. It is a lot with which to deal. I’ve read several replies that offered good suggestions. But the best one is contacting a financial advisor. There are many considerations. For example: 1) which state your mom’s home is located; 2) was there a will, no will, or living will (trust); 3) is an estate attorney necessary; 4) if there is a will, maybe your mom’s state requires probate; 5) is your sister wholly related to you, half-sister, foster child, etc.; 6) your sister’s relationship may be important because of total value of estate and your mom’s intentions - 50/50 split, etc.; 7) maybe your named as pension beneficiary because some pensions only allow one to be listed; 8) did she leave a lot of cash, jewelry, safety deposit box, life insurance, or other assets; 9) is Your intent to share her estate equally with our sister; 10) was your mom still married, divorced, widowed, etc.
These are some of the many questions to consider with a parent’s death. Your mom’s state of residence may offer a guide or have a department to point you in the right direction for answers, such as, state department of Health and Human Services, department of vital statistics, etc. Many estate lawyers will offer initial free consultation on what documents you need or steps you need to take. Remember the U.S. Social Security Administration pays money towards burial, cremation, etc. ($200?). If she served in the armed forces, she may be entitled to a death benefit. Also, for every state where your mom lived, you should check those states’ unclaimed property departments. This includes money owed to businesses, life insurance proceeds/refunds, forgotten bank accounts, etc. Check now and at least once a year for the next 7-10 years. I hope this helps.
I'm so sorry you're going through this difficult situation after losing your mom. Dealing with her estate on top of grieving must be incredibly challenging. I would advise taking a step back and giving yourself time before making significant decisions about the house. Don't rush into anything driven purely by finances or guilt.
From a practical standpoint, look closely at the costs and potential income of keeping vs. selling the house. If renting it out seems viable after the mortgage, it could provide passive income. But consider all the responsibilities of being a landlord, too.
Ultimately, there's no objectively "right" choice here. If keeping the house would bring you comfort and connection to your mom's memory, and you can afford it, that may outweigh the financial factors. Just make sure to involve your sister and look over your motivations. This is a highly personal decision, so listen to your heart while thinking it through logically. Take your time and be gentle with yourself through this process.
I’d consult with an estate/financial/tax advisor before making any decisions. It’s a highly emotional time and you need objective guidance.
I'd def sell it. Had an old lady across the street I'd talk to quite a bit and would do some stuff for her when her health really started declining. Got to know one of her daughters that frequently looked after her. Anyhow she eventually passed and the daughter was faced with a similar situation. She chose to keep it and rent it out. First tenants were a mess for her. Sounds like they didn't take very good care of the house and had some other issues with them as well. Next tenants sound much better, but she still mentioned all the hassle and not netting the money she thought. Said she should of just sold it and likely will when the current tenants leave.
never mix emotion with finance.
Sell it and move on with your life. It's a material thing and will be forgotten with time.
If you don't want to live in it, sell it, split the proceeds, fill your emergency fund, apply extra to debts/mortgage based on interest.
SELL!
Agreed never rent a home you love and may want to keep in the future. Too much heartache risk and the money won't matter then even if you win financially. I did that once and will never do it again.
I was in almost this exact situation several years when my mom passed away a week after we bought our new house, except nothing was owing on her home. We had just started a good sized mortgage and would have gone into even more debt to buy out my sisters half. We decided thankfully to just sell the house, and split the proceeds. We made the right decision for us, it would have been a major headache to take care of two properties, and trust that the renter never skipped payments. Only you can figure out what you’re willing to deal with, what financial risk to take. Good luck.
Sell it, pay off what she owed the bank and divide the rest between you and your sister. Both of you siblings can walk through the house to say your goodbyes. Keep small momento’s from the house and move on. Do not try to keep the house for sentimental reasons.
A few questions:
What is the value of your mom's house?
Can you get a loan for the balance?
What is the value of your new house?
How much would you have to pay out your sister?
Do you have the funds to pay your sister, or would you have to get another loan?
Are you financially secure to be able to pay a second loan?
What is the rental market in your city/town like? Would you struggle to find a renter?
Keep in mind that you don't get to just assume the balance of the existing loan. You will need to refinance that with a lender (assuming you don't have cash to pay the existing lender).
There is something to be said for having rental properties. My cousin, who is a realtor, actually has two. One in a highly desirable town, where it is extremely hard to find housing. Another is in the area of a major university, that will ALWAYS have student renters.
Others have mentioned emotional attachment, and they are right. You WILL need to separate yourself emotionally from the house.
Sorry for your loss.
Sell it. You won't regret it
See if she had mortgage insurance that paid off the house in the event of her death, though that may only cover accidental death. My Dad passed in July of 2023 due to an accident, and he had AD&D mortgage insurance. It took months for the mortgage company to apply the payment, during which time I had to make the monthly payments, but they did reimburse me, minus $120 for some reason.
Another point to consider, leave everything as it is. Don’t inform the mortgage company (unless she did have insurance to pay it off), clean it out (the hardest part because memories), and rent it. As long as the mortgage company gets their monthly payments, they really don’t care. If they find out she’s gone, they’ll either call in the loan or try to get you to refinance with a much higher rate, because of the current economy.
If you have the money to buy out your sister, I say do it, but make her sign a legally binding statement that she can’t come at you later for more. If you sell the house later and get more than its current value, she’ll just have to deal.
I actually regret selling my parents house. Emotions aside...houses are valuable assets and you can do your due diligence and rent to responsible people. If you are young enough and willing to put in the effort to take care of this property either yourself or via a handy man...this house will probably make you more money over the long run then if you just sell it. Talk to a financial planner.
Pay off the mortgage, rent out the house and profit share the rental income with your sister. Your rental income will offset the heinous monthly mortgage payment (due to current rates etc) and you’ll be letting one home pay down another mortgage. Real estate and emotions shouldn’t mix.
Sell it and take the money to add to the principle of your loan. Don't refinance your loan if you have a lower interest rate. Once principle is added to your loan that places the balance at the middle of the loan schedule, then the loan has very, very little interest. For instance, on a 30-year 360 month loan, pay it down fast to hit the 180 month payment schedule and then Do Not add any extra to your payments after that. Reinvest instead. The reason is from 180 months, and below is mostly principle and very little interest in comparison to the first 180 payments of a new loan.
My dad passed. There’s 3 of us. We had no connection to the house and it was in an undesirable neighborhood. At the time , I was the only one living out of state and had no desire or intention of moving back. None of us had a close relationship with my dad. My sister and I let my stepbrother (dad’s son) have the house. That’s where he lives and the mortgage was low🤷🏾♀️. Nobody bought anyone out. Do what’s best for you and your family.
Sell it. We rented out my dad’s house and honestly it was emotionally taxing watch them change his house whenever we went over.
Sell it!!!!
Learned that a car and a home are not good keepsakes of a loved one.
Sell it, sentiment over family homes is over rated. I got over my mother selling the family home, it wasn't something I would want to live in and I sure didn't want to manage a rental long distance
Fix it up and if it's possible rent it out. That way you can get more money as it's an automatic rental property with a good tenant.
Just sell it
I think you need more information, or at least I do! Have several brokers come in and give you a sales price and a rental price. You also need to understand typical timelines for both scenarios and what else you need/should/could do to obtain optimal pricing. Another thing is for you to speak to her mortgagor and get all those details. Perhaps you or a buyer can assume the mortgage. That plus the upkeep and any other bills you can’t pass on to a tenant is the minimum you need to charge rent for unless you pay it off. In that case, include insurance and taxes ect. It’s a lot to be a landlord but also a good source of income. This can’t be about being emotionally attached to the house primarily, although keep in mind if it’s gone it’s gone, it’s a financial decision. Sorry for your loss OP. Take time and it will become more clear what you should do.
If you can self manage the rental, the tax advantages can be well worth it.
Treat it like a business decision, not an emotional one.
The being emotionally attached to a rental is a good point to consider. Other things such as how handy are you and how are your people skills? Stull will go wrong with every aspect of the place. If your family can deal with at least some of them, that makes a big difference. If you live nearby, that makes a big difference. How open are your schedules if you need to go and deal with something, or even find someone who can deal with it? Renters expect promptness. Also, consider yard maintenance and snow removal. You can make that theirs to take care of in the lease but if the town fines someone for a violation, it will be you, and not them. Also in the town I live in, even if the water bill is in their name, if they do not pay it, they go after the property owner. I am sure the electric and gas companies wish they could get in on that deal. There is also trash where I live, it has to be paid to be removed, recyclables need to be sorted and again, guess who gets fined. There is money to be made, but you need to be handy on your own and have some good contacts for plumbing mostly, but and general busted stuff. One of my buddies, starting back in his 30's started buying and renting places and he put a good team together. In fact today the key people on his old to call team work for him full time, he has a lot of places and even with all the expenses he makes very good money. But there is a lot more to it than putting an ad in the paper and collecting the checks.
Sell it. I sold my mom’s house and it was a stress reliever. I gave the contents of what family didn’t want to an organization that has a yearly yard sale and donates the money to a charity. They came and helped box it, carried it out and took it away. It was a relief to let go. The memories are in your heart.
Rent that thing out
There are HUGE tax consequenses, both positive and negative, so you will want to run this past a financial/tax advisor. There are non-financial consequences too. 1) Inheriting the house gives you and your sister what is called a "stepped up basis" which means if you sell it you will not pay capital gains tax on the gain from the time your mom bought it, until she died. This is a BIG gift from the IRS, one of very few, haha! You will pay the tax (typically 15%) on the gain, if there is one, from date of death to date of sale. So if the house increased in value $5K since January, you (and your sister jointly) would owe $750, your half would be $375. Not a big deal for such a big inheritance. For this reason, you want to sell the house and invest your 1/2 of the proceeds. Chances are any gain since January will be eaten up by the cost of sale (real estate commission), so you will likely owe NO tax on that inheritance. You will need a "date of death" appraisal on the property - or at very least a historical CMA from a realtor as of that date, and a letter written on their letterhead, with their signature and license #, attesting to the value of the home on that date in January 2024 2) If you and your sister inherited your mom's retirement accounts, there are HUGE tax consequences to liquidating them, not positive. The IRS gives you just10 years to use that money, you cannot save it for your own retirement. So if your mom had $200K, and $100K is yours, you can distribute $10K per year for 10 years to yourself and not greatly impact your tax scenario. Or distribute it however you want, as long as it is all gone in 10 years. So if you had a non-working year (layoff, job change, etc), you can certainly take more that year. If you take your $100K now to pay off the mortgage, you will be adding $100K to your tax return this year, as if you had earned it, and will pay that increased tax burden. This all depends on your current tax scenario - will this throw you into a much higher tax bracket for all or some of that $100K? 3) non-financial advise: I am a landlord, have been for decades and 2 of our rentals were our old homes where we raised our kids. We have gotten over the sentimental attachment and see them as investments. Being a landlord can be very hard, and you have to be prepared to see the house ruined, and then pay for the repairs. And wait til you interview prospective tenants - cannot believe some people! In todays world you need to watch out for identity theft, and depending on the state you are in, you can easily get stuck with deadbeat tenants. Can you handle this, any lawyers in the family? There are financial and legal consequences, that will affect your life now, and when you retire and die. 4) Once you convert this house to a rental, you will have to keep careful track of income and expenses, and depreciation on the dwelling. This complicates your tax returns now, although for the next 27.5 years, that depreciation helps your income scenario and lowers your tax burden. But what the IRS giveth, it takes away later. If you sell the house as an investment property, you have to "recapture" all those years of the depreciation "gift" and this can destroy a tax return. Ask me how I know. So what we plan to do is for our kids to just inherit the houses, get the stepped up basis, and do as I suggested in #1. It is a great way to leave non-taxable assets to heirs, but you have to survive all the years as a property owner/landlord. The easiest and most profitable for you, with the least tax burden is to sell the house, invest that money, and then make a plan to distribute your share of the retirement accounts over the next 10 years. This can all be a huge boost your own retirement. Max out your ROTH contributions at work, and then "pay" yourself back with your mom's retirement money, so that your take home pay is what you need. Good luck. Please see a financial advisor about this!
Sell it, you will never agree on a price for your sister otherwise. Sell, split proceeds is easy and clean.
Sell it. Split the profits 50/50 with your sister. Right now, the profits to you and your sister are tax free.
Sell it. Keep the proceeds as an emergency fund, don't squander the profits.
For ease of purpose and to stave off potential conflict I would recommend selling it and splitting the proceeds. Hopefully it is worth more than the $200k that she owed.
Take pictures of everything and sell the house. Save yourself the headache of being a landlord.
100% you don’t want to see your mom’s beautiful house trashed because some Chad threw a party
Sell it. Your sister doesn't want anything to do with it. Are you the executor? I think sell it, split proceeds, done. Renting it out involves more work on your part and potential bad blood with your sister. My mother didn't owe on hers but we sold it and split it between my sister and I.
If this your mom’s home had no ties to you and it went up for sale would you buy it to rent? If your answer is no, then sell it.
I actually just bought my house. As a renter, I would always leave it in better condition than I found it. However I know that's not the case with most people. I had a friend that because it was a rental. She didn't care about putting grease down the drain or leaving holes in the wall. Or just not taking care of it in general Sadly most people don't take care of their rentals
Can you hold onto it for a year before you make any decisions?
Are you sure your mother didn’t have insurance through her mortgage that will pay the house off in case of her death?
Sell. Don’t deal with a renters nightmare. Take whatever profit and do something to honor your mom somewhere special and whatever else is left invest as she would have wanted her kids to not be left with anything. Wishing you the best!
Sell your Mother’s home, and spilt with your sister after it sells and all costs has been covered my the sale. Don’t buy your sister out, this is not just your problem.
First nd foremost may god bless u nd keep your mind sane,do wat every makes u nd ur family happy 😃,I am a mom myself ,Your mom would want u happy nd to make the best decision I do believe..God bless nd keep prayers going up !!!
We sold my in-laws properties after they passed and regret it now. It would have been a lot of work and stress but well worth it in hindsight. Just one perspective.
Do you want to see other people in your old home, putting wear & tear on it? How will that sit on your soul. Also, any property rental property needs to be treated as just an asset, not a sentimental object, particularly one that valuable.
Sell it. Someday you will be happier you did.
Sell.
Def sell it. My mom passed a year ago, it was 60 miles away and I hated the HOA. So I had to sell it, I couldn't fathom dealing with it as a rental or move that far into it. Home prices are up again over 6% (depending on things) and its supposedly still a sellers market. So get it up ASAP and get it sold. Only do repairs that impact safety and nothing else, sell as-is and get out from under it.
assuming all the legal stuff has been dealt with, split it with your sister and move on with all the other things related to your moms passing.
Sorry you are dealing with this, its never an easy thing.
edit: hardest thing for me to deal with, was all the stuff inside the house. My brother wanted to trash\yard sale it all and I couldn't, due to her wishes. So now I get to deal with all that stuff.. which is emotionally draining anytime I look at any of it. Hope your sister isn't like my brother, I had to get lawyers involved to keep his greed and general assholeness in check dealing with $$ and things of value.
Sell and split proceeds with your sister
Sell it while soon, while you can avoid capital gains taxes. That way you won't have to use your mother's retirement funds. Won't those be split with your sister? Is the house close to your current location? I wouldn't consider turning it into a rental if it's some distance away. And honestly, look into what acting as a landlord entails. It's a lot of work and can really be a headache.
If you want to be a landlord, with all the headaches, keep it. Otherwise sell it and split the proceeds with your sister
I'm on team pay off and rent it.
Best investment is real estate. Tough choice
The biggest mistake when it comes to money is becoming emotional about making any decisions about it. This is the situation where you need to make the decision that's going to ultimately give you the best opportunity for profit and the ability to help you and your family financially.
I don't know about anybody else, but my real estate investments have been by far the best investments I've ever made in my entire life. we are currently experiencing an interesting phenomenon in the real estate market with hedge funds buying up every property they can get a hold of. This is a situation that is only going to cause real estate prices to rise along with the potential to get the highest rent You will ever be able to charge for your renters. You need to hold onto this property and rent it out.And I guarantee you in 5 or 6 years.Your property is going to go up substantially. And even if there's a huge real estate crash everything to do with your rental property is tax deductible. What you need to get do is get together with a reputable property management firm that can write the ultimate lease agreement that will protect you under any condition. And become a landlord for the next ten years. You don't think about this as your mother's house,Think about this as your investment property. And please don't listen to anyone else on this thread about selling this property immediately.I would bet most of these people don't even have two nickels to rub together.
Having had rental property, I can tell you that you will have nothing but headaches renting out a house of that value. Especially if the house means something to you. Sell it and let a new family make memories in the home.
There is no wrong answer. Just what is less stressful to you .
Keep the house and rent it out. Real estate always go up with time and you make money this way. They will keep on printing money so real estate will keep going up. Long term rental is relatively easy.
Just rent it. Maybe refinance it if the payment is high and rent it. You can give it to your kids when they get older to use towards college or their life. It will keep growing in equity. Pay your sister out and eep it
Sell it and then split profit with sister. All the fees from selling. Taxes, insurance and utilities while waiting for house to sell. Talk to realtor. Is house realistically going to sell for more? Then take all the proceeds and pay lump sum on your new home.
Rent it
Sell it. If you buy your sister out and then it ends up dramatically increasing in value it might cause a strain in your relationship. Would she expect a share of the sudden windfall even though it was her choice?
- What is market value in real time?
- Present $ to Sis, then talk on real time market value.
Then go forward, from there, we are not therapists.
Alan Youngs - Approx 85 years old, once lived in Wakefield, Michigan; relocated to Milwaukee in the 1960s
Search
There are two kinds of people in this world - smart and stupid.
You've been given an opportunity to have someone else increase your wealth. Capitalize on it.
I’m so sorry. My fiancé died, and I know what it feels like especially figuring out where to put our ceased miscarried, daughters ashes.
Sell the new house you bought, keep mom's, pay it off and don't have any mortgage.
I rented my mom’s condo. I also rented the house my dad lived in though it was our summer home at one time. Things have gone well. It has been 20 years since my dad passed away and 3.5 since my mom passed away. I remember my dad’s lawyer telling me not to rush into selling. Sometimes widows sell their house right away and regret it. He said to wait at least a year. Consider your financial circumstances. Can you and your sister afford to split the mortgage? Would either of you want to live there? What is the rental market like? What is the market for selling the house? Also are you interested in being a landlord? I have really liked Zillow Rentals.
I'll never forget when my brother and I had to have an estate sale and then sell our parent's house. We grew up in that house. Neither of us wanted to sell but neither of us could live there: my job was in another state 5 hours away by car, and his family was too big for the house.
I got over it. Live moves on; a house is just a thing. You'll need to make the payments until a court allows you to sell (do that from your mom's estate if you are the executor, or whoever is the executor should do this). Then sell it, and split the equity with your sister. If your mom has retirement savings, that will add up to a tidy sum that will help you build retirements savings of your own. You can refinance your home to lower your payments and pay off some bills. If you are care with it, you'll still have a nice nest egg.
My mother died almost 10 years ago. She left me a nice inheritance. I still have almost all of it because I was smart in how I handled the money. I treat her money as a sacred trust and hope to have something left to give to my nieces and nephews in time (I have no kids).
Pay it off and rent it out. That’ll create residual income.
My husband occasionally mentions renting out our current home when/if we ever get my dream house. I refuse to become a landlord. I like my current home. I don’t want to rent it to people that will probably trash it. I’ll sell. Walk away from our first home and never come back to the neighborhood. Same as with my mom’s property when she passes. It will be sold and I won’t ever go back. I know the house and barn are going to be torn down. The pasture leveled and trees cleared. Nope
If you feel any type of way towards the house keep it and rent it out. Once its gone, it would be very difficult to get it back. At least if you rent it out, you can go there at times and still see it.
Sell. Unless, it's in a hot tourist area. Then, possibly rent it but use a local agent.
Sell it
Sell it.
Sell it as soon as possible. Don’t put any time or money into it. The market is near all time high. Take the money and put it into a cd or municipal bond. The interest will probably be as much as your rental property profit with zero headaches and liabilities.
Sell it. Housing prices are high right now and renting is difficult, can be expensive and it's hard to recover money from negligent or poor tenants.
That’s too big of an investment for a rental!
You can add yourself to her mortgage and rent it out and continue to pay the mortgage. You don’t have to pay off the mortgage….just add yourself. If you remove her name it won’t work. And yes it’s legal.
Sell it. Pay off the mortgage. Split the proceeds.
I was in this same position and I sold it, but I do regret it a little. It was a beautiful home on the central California coast and i would never be able to afford something like that again. I sold it for 610K and it’s now worth 1.2M. But I was 24 and in NYC for grad school so would have had to rent it out which was too much to figure out at the time. I think the comments here are right that it’s better to sell but personally I have some regrets from doing that but mainly because it was somewhere I would want to live someday. May not be the case for your mom
Sell, split the proceeds
Sell it before squatters take over.
Sell it. Trust me, you don't want to be emotionally attached to a rental.