Life Estate Confusion

[remainderman3]

What is the name of your state (only U.S. law)? Pennsylvania
Briefly, my father-in-law, gave life estate to his girlfriend in his will. The three children are the beneficiaries or remaindermen after her death.
Does the law clearly state the remanindermen's financial obligations to the property during the period the life tenant is alive?

For instance, does putting in a new septic liner get paid by tenant or us?
Furnace repair?
Leaky pipes?
Electrical problems?
The will stipulates nothing other than she has life estate in the property. She is using us as landlord's and maintenance men.

Is there something we can mail to her to make our responsibilities in this agreement clear?

 

[justalayman]

I don't know of any law that apportions responsibility for the items. It is generally accepted, from what I have seen, that the tenant/resident is responsible for taxes, interest on a mortgage (if applicable), and general maintenance.

major items are often negotiated but realistically, the tenant is responsible to prevent waste of the premises so I would think that arguably it would be the responsibility of the tenant/resident to pay for all the items you mention.

Is there something we can mail to her to make our responsibilities in this agreement clear?

Not that I can find but if you can find something that specifically states the tenant is responsible for preventing waste of the premises, it would be a simple step to show her that if she does not make these repairs, she is allowing waste of the premises and as such, gives you cause to seek to terminate the life estate.

 

[tranquility]

Look up the concept of "waste" and guess as to if a judge would consider each scenario such. Otherwise, what would the person who wants to eventually receive the property want to do with it?

 

[TrustUser]

interesting thread.

in massachusetts, the life tenant is considered to be the owner of the property for property tax purposes.

http://www.mass.gov/Ador/docs/dls/publ/101Handbook/Chapter7.pdf

 

[TrustUser]

an interesting thread, regarding texas.

Life Tenant Responsibilities in Texas

another interesting read

Section II. Powers Of A Life Tenant

 

[Andy0192]

Too bad the property is in Pennsylvania. None of the above applies.

 

[remainderman3]

so what does apply?

So does Pennsylvania have any specifics? It just seems to be one person's opinion (tenant) over the other (remainderman) and this woman is a very controlling demanding person, who we prefer not to act as her free handymen and go-to people.

 

[TrustUser]

hi r3,

i posted some various information to at least give you some general understanding of how it works in various areas.

i think you are approaching this incorrectly. it seems to me that you have been bowing down to her every whim, because you cant prove exact specifics regarding pennsylvania.

why not take the opposite approach and become aggressive ? show her stuff that you have found, and tell her that you dont intend to be her slave any more, and have her prove to you that you are supposed to be her slave. and btw, while she is attempting to prove this, send her a legal letter with some demands of your own.

from what i have read, it seems generally true that the life tenant has quite a bit of responsibility to take care of the property.

no one can control you unless you allow it. demanding people are easy to deal with, IF YOU ARE WILLING TO BE AGGRESSIVE. if not, they will continue to walk all over you, because you are giving them signals that they can.

(so you see andy, there is some application, if you take the time to think for a second)

 

[TrustUser]

if you do a search on +remainderman +pennsylvania, you will get quite a few hits.

this one is an elder care attorney in philadelphia.

Philadelphia Life Estate Attorneys | Asset Protection Law Offices Pennsylvania PA