What is the name of your state? Maryland
My wife is one of three siblings receiving one third of the balance of her father's estate.
Her father was a very generous man during his lifetime, including paying $120,000 for an addition to another sibling's house for a major addition and some items she wanted, like a new kitchen, etc. This was done so that he could move in and live on one floor. He was in his early 80's and this was a "better" solution for him and his wife.
Not long after he did this, my wife and I asked him for help so that we could purchase a home. We were both 50 and previously divorced with severely negative financial outcomes. He and his wife were happy to do so, but we prepared a very simple letter wherein we would pay monthly interest and then the balance in full two years later. The loan amount is $50,000 and we could not meet the deadline. We continued to pay interest to him until his demise some ten months ago (his wife predeceased him by two years).
There are a number of items of interest regarding the above mentioned sibling who was a co-power of attorney for the decedent. I know we could petition the court for a full accounting, but don't really want to make this more difficult than it is. Just know that she decided to send her daughter to private school at a cost of $6,000 per year, two years before his demise. We know of other expenses she used his funds to pay for her own gain.
The third sibling is the personal representative of the will. Everyone knew of the loan, but again, this man was a very charitable person. On more than one occasion, we discussed it with him and he continually said, "don't worry about the loan". He had more than enough assets to provide him security, even when he was residing in the nursing home.
Even though my wife wrote her sibling about her dad's "forgiveness", the PR discussed the situation with the other sibling (the $120,000 addition sibling) and they deemed the loan necessary to be paid. There is no specific language in his will regarding this in any way and the will is two pages... very simple. Under the brief powers clause, the key section is "or otherwise to dispose of any assets at such times and upon such terms as the Personal Representative shall deem advisable....".
1. I realize that the loan is technically an asset of the estate.
2. It would seem to me that the language above provides the PR broad powers with respect to this situation. Further, when he was thinking about the loan, he contacted the other sibling to help in his decision making. She is not the PR and in my view, the PR should be making the decision on his own.
3. The PR is not even remotely considering the $120,000 spent on the addition, but has decided that the $50,000 loan is part of the estate.
My questions are: Should my wife and I petition the PR firmly about this, that the loan was not paid off when scheduled and her father verbally told the both of us on many occasions not to worry about the loan (btw, the PR has a copy of the letter)?
Can the PR simply ignore the "asset" as his power under the will seems to have a great deal of discretion in this area? Further, there is no specific language regarding loans in the Will.
My wife has been told by the PR that her share in a $300,000 estate will be reduced by the $50,000, which will be split between the siblings. Is that a lawful means of "collecting" on this loan that we know was forgiven?
Thank you in advance for reading such a long post and providing your advice and feedback!
My wife is one of three siblings receiving one third of the balance of her father's estate.
Her father was a very generous man during his lifetime, including paying $120,000 for an addition to another sibling's house for a major addition and some items she wanted, like a new kitchen, etc. This was done so that he could move in and live on one floor. He was in his early 80's and this was a "better" solution for him and his wife.
Not long after he did this, my wife and I asked him for help so that we could purchase a home. We were both 50 and previously divorced with severely negative financial outcomes. He and his wife were happy to do so, but we prepared a very simple letter wherein we would pay monthly interest and then the balance in full two years later. The loan amount is $50,000 and we could not meet the deadline. We continued to pay interest to him until his demise some ten months ago (his wife predeceased him by two years).
There are a number of items of interest regarding the above mentioned sibling who was a co-power of attorney for the decedent. I know we could petition the court for a full accounting, but don't really want to make this more difficult than it is. Just know that she decided to send her daughter to private school at a cost of $6,000 per year, two years before his demise. We know of other expenses she used his funds to pay for her own gain.
The third sibling is the personal representative of the will. Everyone knew of the loan, but again, this man was a very charitable person. On more than one occasion, we discussed it with him and he continually said, "don't worry about the loan". He had more than enough assets to provide him security, even when he was residing in the nursing home.
Even though my wife wrote her sibling about her dad's "forgiveness", the PR discussed the situation with the other sibling (the $120,000 addition sibling) and they deemed the loan necessary to be paid. There is no specific language in his will regarding this in any way and the will is two pages... very simple. Under the brief powers clause, the key section is "or otherwise to dispose of any assets at such times and upon such terms as the Personal Representative shall deem advisable....".
1. I realize that the loan is technically an asset of the estate.
2. It would seem to me that the language above provides the PR broad powers with respect to this situation. Further, when he was thinking about the loan, he contacted the other sibling to help in his decision making. She is not the PR and in my view, the PR should be making the decision on his own.
3. The PR is not even remotely considering the $120,000 spent on the addition, but has decided that the $50,000 loan is part of the estate.
My questions are: Should my wife and I petition the PR firmly about this, that the loan was not paid off when scheduled and her father verbally told the both of us on many occasions not to worry about the loan (btw, the PR has a copy of the letter)?
Can the PR simply ignore the "asset" as his power under the will seems to have a great deal of discretion in this area? Further, there is no specific language regarding loans in the Will.
My wife has been told by the PR that her share in a $300,000 estate will be reduced by the $50,000, which will be split between the siblings. Is that a lawful means of "collecting" on this loan that we know was forgiven?
Thank you in advance for reading such a long post and providing your advice and feedback!
A will does not need to list specific debts and assets of the estate to be quite valid.