Who Can Prepare Estate Planning Documents? A reader in Arizona points out that paralegals can prepare trusts, wills, and other documents needed for a successful estate plan Q: As you are attorneys, you may not like to hear that in Arizona, paralegals can prepare estate planning documents. This includes trusts, wills, powers of attorney and [...]
Financing Your Forever Home What's the best way to finance a newly constructed house that will become your forever home? Q: I’ve been reading your book 100 Questions Every First Time Homebuyer Should Ask. As my wife and I approach retirement age around two years from now, we’re wondering if we’ll ever be able to [...]
Selling a Home You Half Own What happens if your soon-to-be ex-husband sells his half of your home. How do you sell a home you half own? Q: My disabled sister has been separated from her husband. Her husband signed over half of the house to his aunt. My sister never signed that deed. [...]
Transferring House Title Into Daughter's Name A reader wants to know how to pay the back taxes owed and transfer her mother's property into her name Q: My mother passed away in January of this year. She died without a will. My house sits on land that was my mothers and is supposed to be [...]
More Homeowner Association (HOA) Problems Readers are complaining about the issues they're facing with HOAs nationwide. To judge the contents of our inbox, people are having a lot of problems with their homeowner associations (HOAs). They’re also having trouble living in developments run by HOAs and by the lack of interest in serving on association [...]
Capital Gains on Townhouse Sale How should the owners calculate their capital gain on a townhouse they have both lived in and rented? Q: We are selling our townhome this year that we bought almost 30 years ago. We lived there first for 17 years, as a primary residence and then we rented it. How [...]
Commercial Property Won't Sell Owner doesn't know if he can give it away or simply abandon his building Q: I own a commercial property that I no longer want to own. The market value of this property is zero as there are many abandoned properties nearby. The real estate taxes are astronomically high for a [...]
Trust Distribution Held Up Q: I was told I am a beneficiary of my sister's trust. She owned a home and other assets. Her son is the trustee but we don’t have a good relationship. I have been waiting for my distribution for several months. I have called several times and each time I [...]
Trusts Need Their Own Checking Accounts Q: I read your recent article about how to put a home with a mortgage into a trust. I agree with your advice, but as the daughter who had to deal with the sale of my mother’s home that was held in her trust, there is one further [...]
Emotional Support Animals, Landlords, and Tenants Q: My daughter lives in a large apartment building in a western suburb of Chicago. She is allowed to have her emotional support animal as long as she has documentation from her doctor. Now she is shopping around for a condominium. There is a unit that she really likes, [...]
