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Contents go with the house ?

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BobDukes

Junior Member
What is the name of your state?What is the name of your state?What is the name of your state? SC
My mother died last April. The following week, my sister died that was on my mother's accounts as a co-owner. My sister did not have a will. The banks blocked me from even reviewing my mother's safe deposit box contents which contained about $70,000.00 worth of cd's. I can only assume that they were co-owned as well. My nephew took possesion of everything and did distribute 1/3 of the cd amounts to myself and my other sister. This is not my personal problem.

I have a problem with as soon as my mother died, my nephew let me know that he considered everything in my mother's house to be his. The house was willed to my sister. The will stated the house and the land that it sits on. The line that my nephew and my other sister do not agree with me about reads as follows...
I leave the following items:
To *******-house at ******** and the property it sits on. Furniture, except items I've numbered to be drawn for.

My mother had intended to number certain items in the house to go to certain individuals. She never did that. Now, both my nephew and my other sister claim that everything in the home belongs to my nephew. We are not talking about more than $25,000.00 worth of contents but I am bothered by the fact that my mother's will may not be carried out as she intended. I maintain that my nephew has a claim to everything in the home that belonged to his mother. The remaining contents, I feel should be distributed 3 ways or sold and those proceeds distributed.

My nephew and my sister have given me so much grief over this that I am considering requesting the court to remove me as executor. I have to decide whether or not to accept my nephew or sister's appointment very soon. I would appreciate some thoughts on whether or not I am looking at this incorrectly. I have maintained my entire life that when my parents died, I would not fight over "stuff" left behind. The ramrodding of their interpretation however leaves me questioning whether or not my rolling over is the proper thing to do.

Recently, I asked my sister if she could please provide me a list of things that she had removed from the home. It was very obvious on a recent visit that a number of items have been removed. She became terribly upset. Her son has threatened me that if I upset his mother again, he will cause me physical harm. My first inclination is to say that the contents of the home are not worth the effort. Another part of me says that I need to see that my's will is executed as she intended.

There are other extenuating issues that make me not want to serve as executor. An example is my nephew having put my mother on the payroll while his mother was actually doing some light work for him. He paid my mother so that his mother's income would not show any earnings. Now, a final tax return must be filed and I do not want to sign a tax return that is inaccurate. My nephew and my sister think I am being a "goody-goody".

Thank you for any advice or personal thoughts on how I should proceed. My plans were to request my removal as executor this week.
 
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seniorjudge

Guest
"...My mother died last April. The following week, my sister died that was on my mother's accounts as a co-owner...."

You do not make it clear whose will you are probating; if it is mom's, you are required to make an inventory of everything she had when she died.

If you are unwilling to force the issue (by having the court give you court orders to that effect) then you should resign.
 

BobDukes

Junior Member
Thank you

Thank you. I did not inventory anything since the house and all of her bank accounts and such passed straight through. I am the executor of my mother's estate. She had a will and name me alternate after my sister who dies within a week of my mom. I will assume from your comment that I should have inventoried the contents regardless ? Couch, chair, etc ?
 

nextwife

Senior Member
A "house" is real property" and leaving a house would not necessarilly INCLUDE contents unless "and contents" or some similar language were used. Just as agreeing to sell a house does NOT mean "contents" are included. A house is legally seperate property from it's contents.
 
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seniorjudge

Guest
nextwife said:
A "house" is real property" and leaving a house would not necessarilly INCLUDE contents unless "and contents" or some similar language were used. Just as agreeing to sell a house does NOT mean "contents" are included. A house is legally seperate property from it's contents.
Agreed.

"...I will assume from your comment that I should have inventoried the contents regardless ?..."
Yes; you must inventory ALL property: real, personal, or mixed.
 

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