Claim of verbal agreement regarding property of deceased parent

[Les726]

Hello all, I'm hoping you can give advice and steer me in the right direction. My father had been living in Florida at his sister's second home for the past 20 years. She lives in PA. There was never any formal rental agreement, but he covered utilities, had home insurance and replaced appliances, etc. He passed away Monday. I'm from NJ, but had been in Florida staying with him since the end of November. I'm the executor of his will and he left everything to my sister and I.

Back in September, he had a stroke and after getting released from the hospital, was in a rehab center for a couple months. It was during that time, that his sister agreed to assist and pay off the rest of his motorcycle bill ($4k). He had bought the bike new for $40k. She just claimed yesterday that he said if she paid it off, she could get the money from a sale of the bike to cover house repairs which seem to be from 20 years of normal wear and tear. What doesn't make sense is that he was still in rehab at the time and believed he would recover and get back to normal living. He loved that bike and never gave me any indication that he wanted to sell it. When I spoke to him, he only told me that she agreed to cover the bill because he was unable to make payments while in rehab and because she had inherited $2 million.

Does she have any claim to the bike? The title hasn't been mailed out yet, but his mail is being forwarded to my sister's house so she should receive it. If the bike is rightfully mine and it's locked in her garage, what would I have to do to get possession? The other situation is that he has medical bills from the stroke and rehab. How do I find out if I'm responsible? Thank you in advance.

 

[adjusterjack]

Does she have any claim to the bike?

Dunno. Oral agreements are just as enforceable as written agreements, just harder to prove the terms. If the title is in your father's name, there's a stronger presumption that she doesn't have a claim on it.

The title hasn't been mailed out yet

From where? By who?

If the bike is rightfully mine

Nothing is rightfully yours until it's probated.

what would I have to do to get possession?

Get a court order as part of the probate process. If she disobeys the court order she can be held in contempt.

is mail is being forwarded to my sister's house

If you have your court papers appointing you executor or representative of the estate you should be able to go to the post office and change the forwarding. With those court papers you should also be able to get the title mailed to you by whoever has it.

If you are trying to probate your father's will without being court appointed executor or represented you will hit a lot of roadblocks.

The other situation is that he has medical bills from the stroke and rehab. How do I find out if I'm responsible?

You aren't personally responsible for the bill unless you signed something as guarantor. However, the estate is responsible for the bills of the decedent. As executor or representative of the estate you are responsible for seeing that the bills are paid to the extent that the estate as assets to cover them. Assets, including the bike, may have to be sold to pay the bills, so you might not end up with the bike anyway.

The following search yielded several resources about Florida probate:

https://duckduckgo.com/?q=florida+probate&atb=v252-3__&ia=web

 

[LdiJ]

Hello all, I'm hoping you can give advice and steer me in the right direction. My father had been living in Florida at his sister's second home for the past 20 years. She lives in PA. There was never any formal rental agreement, but he covered utilities, had home insurance and replaced appliances, etc. He passed away Monday. I'm from NJ, but had been in Florida staying with him since the end of November. I'm the executor of his will and he left everything to my sister and I.

Back in September, he had a stroke and after getting released from the hospital, was in a rehab center for a couple months. It was during that time, that his sister agreed to assist and pay off the rest of his motorcycle bill ($4k). He had bought the bike new for $40k. She just claimed yesterday that he said if she paid it off, she could get the money from a sale of the bike to cover house repairs which seem to be from 20 years of normal wear and tear. What doesn't make sense is that he was still in rehab at the time and believed he would recover and get back to normal living. He loved that bike and never gave me any indication that he wanted to sell it. When I spoke to him, he only told me that she agreed to cover the bill because he was unable to make payments while in rehab and because she had inherited $2 million.

Does she have any claim to the bike? The title hasn't been mailed out yet, but his mail is being forwarded to my sister's house so she should receive it. If the bike is rightfully mine and it's locked in her garage, what would I have to do to get possession? The other situation is that he has medical bills from the stroke and rehab. How do I find out if I'm responsible? Thank you in advance.

She cannot have the bike. It is an asset of his estate and if his estate does not have enough money to cover his bills, his assets have to be sold to cover his debts. She can make a claim of a 4k debt owed to her, but she cannot claim the bike itself.

 

[Litigator22]

Hello all, I'm hoping you can give advice and steer me in the right direction. My father had been living in Florida at his sister's second home for the past 20 years. She lives in PA. There was never any formal rental agreement, but he covered utilities, had home insurance and replaced appliances, etc. He passed away Monday. I'm from NJ, but had been in Florida staying with him since the end of November. I'm the executor of his will and he left everything to my sister and I.

Back in September, he had a stroke and after getting released from the hospital, was in a rehab center for a couple months. It was during that time, that his sister agreed to assist and pay off the rest of his motorcycle bill ($4k). He had bought the bike new for $40k. She just claimed yesterday that he said if she paid it off, she could get the money from a sale of the bike to cover house repairs which seem to be from 20 years of normal wear and tear. What doesn't make sense is that he was still in rehab at the time and believed he would recover and get back to normal living. He loved that bike and never gave me any indication that he wanted to sell it. When I spoke to him, he only told me that she agreed to cover the bill because he was unable to make payments while in rehab and because she had inherited $2 million.

Does she have any claim to the bike? The title hasn't been mailed out yet, but his mail is being forwarded to my sister's house so she should receive it. If the bike is rightfully mine and it's locked in her garage, what would I have to do to get possession? The other situation is that he has medical bills from the stroke and rehab. How do I find out if I'm responsible? Thank you in advance.

In my opinion (notably aside from any considerations as to her rights as a creditor of the estate) your aunt is not entitled to anything from dad's estate with respect to the bike; neither the bike itself nor the "proceeds from its sale". Not directly. Not from the facts you have provided, principally:

(1) There was a balance of $4K owing on the purchase price of dad's motorcycle.

(2) His sister position is that there was a verbal understanding between she and her brother that "if she paid it off, she could get the money from a sale of the bike."

The crux of the issue lies in the wording of this "verbal understanding" and in particular the timing or maturity of the benefits to be derived by the sister.

Clearly the parties weren't contemplating an immediate sale of the bike. He hoped to have future use of it. Nor can it serve as an accomplished inter vivos gift of the bike.

If such an agreement did in fact occur, the clear import is that it was only to have effect following dad's death; only then would the bike be sold. Only then would the sister benefit. As such the "understanding" can only fit in the realm of testamentary intent or purpose and verbal expressions of testamentary intent - in the manner defining this alleged incident - are not enforceable. In fact testimony of such verbal expressions are not admissible in evidence.

In sum, even with the repeal of Florida's dead man's statute (2005), your aunt would not be heard to testify as to any such communications between she and the deceased.
___________________________

Lastly, it would appear that you are attempting to probate dad's will and estate and taking on the momentous duties and personal responsibilities (and potential liabilities) of a fiduciary without benefit of an attorney. If that is the case, then you are acting most foolishly.

 

[Les726]

Thank you all for taking the time to reply. I'm still a bit overwhelmed with everything that's going on. I was just speaking with my sister and it is our intention to probate our dad's will. I was expecting that the bike would have to be sold to cover any necessary medical bills. I'm just waiting on the death certificate to proceed with the probate.

 

[Litigator22]

Thank you all for taking the time to reply. I'm still a bit overwhelmed with everything that's going on. I was just speaking with my sister and it is our intention to probate our dad's will. I was expecting that the bike would have to be sold to cover any necessary medical bills. I'm just waiting on the death certificate to proceed with the probate.

It isn't surprising that this sorrowful affair is weighing heavily on you. You've had a lot of unpleasantness suddenly come crashing down on you. Your plate is over flowing. So don't add to it by attempting to probate your father's estate without legal representation. Probate is not an intuitive undertaking. Get with an attorney now! Many offer an initial consultation without charge.

 

[zddoodah]

Does she have any claim to the bike?

Not sure what you mean by this, but no one here has any information about the extent to which, if any, she obtained a lien against the bike's title. Based on your post, she appears to claim nothing more than a verbal agreement for repayment of some amount of money.

If the bike is rightfully mine and it's locked in her garage, what would I have to do to get possession?

What would make you think it's "rightfully" yours?

The other situation is that he has medical bills from the stroke and rehab. How do I find out if I'm responsible?

You're not, unless you signed something agreeing to be responsible. Did you do that?

For starters, you are not, as you claim, "the executor of his will." An executor is a person appointed by the court to administer a decedent's estate. Presumably, his will nominates you to be executor, but you won't be executor until the court appoints you. Once you're appointed, you can take possession of your father's assets, ascertain the extent of his debts, use liquid assets to pay debts, liquidate non-liquid assets to the extent needed, and distribute anything left over to yourself and your sister according to the terms of the will. If your aunt believes she has a claim against the estate, she can submit it to you and, if you dispute its validity, you may need to litigate it. I strongly suggest you consult with a local probate attorney. However, if your father had no significant assets other than the motorcycle, I'd suggest getting comfortable with the prospect that the bike will have to be sold and the proceeds used to pay his medical bills.