legal rights

My husband's father was ill and appointed his niece as power of attorney. He is now deceased with no will that we know of. His father left a wife of sound mind who is in a nursing home. What his son wants to know is does his niece have any rights to decided what will happen to the property and house that he left behind. The niece does not have power of attorney over the wife, who is my husband's stepmother. The wife wants my husband to make the decisions about what will be done with the house and property because she is unable to keep up the upgrade of the house or the property. We don't want the house or property because we don't live in the city where it is located and we don't plan to move in the house. We can't afford to pay the taxes and upkeep on that property. He wants to sell everything because he would hate to lose it. This decision would probably make his father's nieces mad but they know they will not take care of everything and they cannot afford to keep the taxes paid or keep up the upkeep of the house.

When the person who granted power of attorney died, the right of the person holding the power to act expired too.

Who the owner of the house is depends on how title was held and who all his heirs at law are (besides his wife). If it was joint tenacy with right of survivorship, it's all hers. If not it probably has to undergo Probate to get title.

If she's the sole owner, it's her call as to what happens. As she is of sound mind, she can grant power of attorney to her stepson. But as other family members may get their noses out of joint, good legal counsel is really necessary to protect everyone, and as there are possible tax consequences, it's especially important.