U
upal_2
Guest
What is the name of your state? California
To make along story short, I have a friend who has just passed the age of 40, for the sake of argument I’ll call him Matt. Matt’s mother passed away about two months ago, and she did not make a will before she died. To further complicate issues, Matt’s mother took out a mortgage worth $100k just before she died on a house that is worth approximately $450k.
Since Matt’s mother passed away, Matt has been the only person residing at the house with the new mortgage on it. Apparently, the bank does not realize that the mother has passed away and in the meanwhile Matt has been making the mortgage payments in his mother’s name.
My main concern is that bank will learn that Matt’s mother has passed away, and demand repayment of the loan in full, which could lead to the bank taking the house and putting Matt on the street. Matt is under the impression that if he continues making payments to the bank for a 12 month period that he will be free and clear and he will have no problems as long as he makes the payments on time. Is this correct, or is Matt fooling himself into believing something that is not true?
Also, Matt has a half-sister who has not yet learned that her mother has passed away. If this half-sister decided to do so, could she stake some sort of claim on the house further complicating matters with the bank? This half-sister has had substance abuse issues in the past and has not always used good judgment when making decisions. Also, I have recently learned that she is living in a homeless shelter at the moment. I have told Matt that he should have his half-sister move into her old room in the house with the mortgage on it. My thinking is that a judge might be somewhat more lenient if two (adult) children were living in the house than just Matt keeping trying to keep it to himself. (Matt has kept the news of his mother’s death from his half-sister in fear that she may immediately demand a percentage of the house. I have known her fairly well and think it is unlikely she would do so.)
One final note, this house has been Matt’s residence for most of his life: he has lived there with his mother for approximately 35 years. Since he has lived there for such a long period of time will the court be less inclined to kick him out if the bank should take control of the house? Also, Matt has a few mental issues of his own that keep him from holding down a full time job, will a court take this into consideration?
What should Matt do at this point?
To make along story short, I have a friend who has just passed the age of 40, for the sake of argument I’ll call him Matt. Matt’s mother passed away about two months ago, and she did not make a will before she died. To further complicate issues, Matt’s mother took out a mortgage worth $100k just before she died on a house that is worth approximately $450k.
Since Matt’s mother passed away, Matt has been the only person residing at the house with the new mortgage on it. Apparently, the bank does not realize that the mother has passed away and in the meanwhile Matt has been making the mortgage payments in his mother’s name.
My main concern is that bank will learn that Matt’s mother has passed away, and demand repayment of the loan in full, which could lead to the bank taking the house and putting Matt on the street. Matt is under the impression that if he continues making payments to the bank for a 12 month period that he will be free and clear and he will have no problems as long as he makes the payments on time. Is this correct, or is Matt fooling himself into believing something that is not true?
Also, Matt has a half-sister who has not yet learned that her mother has passed away. If this half-sister decided to do so, could she stake some sort of claim on the house further complicating matters with the bank? This half-sister has had substance abuse issues in the past and has not always used good judgment when making decisions. Also, I have recently learned that she is living in a homeless shelter at the moment. I have told Matt that he should have his half-sister move into her old room in the house with the mortgage on it. My thinking is that a judge might be somewhat more lenient if two (adult) children were living in the house than just Matt keeping trying to keep it to himself. (Matt has kept the news of his mother’s death from his half-sister in fear that she may immediately demand a percentage of the house. I have known her fairly well and think it is unlikely she would do so.)
One final note, this house has been Matt’s residence for most of his life: he has lived there with his mother for approximately 35 years. Since he has lived there for such a long period of time will the court be less inclined to kick him out if the bank should take control of the house? Also, Matt has a few mental issues of his own that keep him from holding down a full time job, will a court take this into consideration?
What should Matt do at this point?
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