Question Regarding My Grandfather's Will

What is the name of your state? GA

My grandfather passed away on January 6, 2005. My father, who is his son, owns 1 acre next door to where his wife (my father's step-mother) now lives. He left everything to her (including their estate and 17 additional acres).

We had fenced in 1 3/4 acres and also had a well drilled on my grandfather's property (with his permission) for over 20 years because my grandfather originally told my father the land would be his anyway after his death.

After his death in 2005 we received a copy of his will and my father was not mentioned at all. We were then informed by my father's step mother that we were to move our fence off of her property.

She also took a hammer and beat the lock off of our pump house, and proceeded to destroy our well. Once this was done, she placed several POSTED signs on her property. As a result we had a new well drilled on our original acre that we have the deed to.

However, recently we discovered via a county website that the land is not in her name due to outstanding medical debts.

My question is did we make a hasty decision by moving our fence and putting down a new well? If so, can anything be done?

Also, does she have the right to "POST" the property if it is not legally in her name?

What do the POSTED signs say or mean?

Check at the county courthouse probate court to see if the will was ever officially probated. It is possible that the executor never took care of the responsibility of getting the title/deed corrected to show the names of the legal owners. You can't automatically assume that the names showing on computerized county land records are 100% correct because they make errors also.

At some point you will eventually need to consult an attorney to straighten this mess out or get your questions answered.

DANDY DON IN OKLAHOMA ([email protected])

Dandy Don said:

What do the POSTED signs say or mean?

Check at the county courthouse probate court to see if the will was ever officially probated. It is possible that the executor never took care of the responsibility of getting the title/deed corrected to show the names of the legal owners. You can't automatically assume that the names showing on computerized county land records are 100% correct because they make errors also.

At some point you will eventually need to consult an attorney to straighten this mess out or get your questions answered.

DANDY DON IN OKLAHOMA ([email protected])

Click to expand...

She posted one POSTED sign on our pumphouse that she destroyed and another on the satellite dish that she jerked the wires out of....they say no tresspassing...

Yes the will has been probated...

Also, this was stated in the will:

'I desire and direct that all my just debts, including funeral expenses, the cost of a suitable monument and costs of administration of my estate, be paid without unnecessary delay, by my Executor herinafter named and appointed.'

A lawyer told my father that if the debts (hospital bills) weren't paid, the property couldn't go into her name.

i also have an additional question:

my grandfather and his wife also owned land in Dixie County, which she sold before the will was even probated....how was it possible for her to do this?

Peanuts200788 said:

i also have an additional question:

my grandfather and his wife also owned land in Dixie County, which she sold before the will was even probated....how was it possible for her to do this?

Click to expand...

Perhaps, they owned the land jointly with right of survivorship.