Paid Off House: Will It Affect My Trust? If your house is in a trust, will paying off the mortgage affect the successor trustee? Q: Well, I just paid off my house and don't know what the next steps might be. I did receive a letter from my mortgage lender congratulating me on paying off [...]
Finding the will saved the day Sibling never wanted mother's will found so she'd get a bigger inheritance Q: My mother's original will was kept in her attorney's office. At some time after she signed it, her estate attorney died. My sister hoped our mother died without a will so that she would get half [...]
Condo deconversion is being forced on all owners. Is that fair? Q: My daughter purchased her first home - a one bedroom condominium in a suburb of Chicago back in 2017. Recently, she was notified that the building was going to go through a condo deconversion become a rental building. We are questioning all parts [...]
Our estate plan is a will. Is that enough to make sure our son inherits? Q: I read about people putting their home in trust to avoid probate. Our estate plan is a simple will. Our house and everything we own, including our money and personal effects, is left to our son. I thought that [...]
Home Inspection Misses Mad that your professional home inspector missed a bunch of items? You're not alone. Q: When we bought our house six years ago, we got an inspection with a 55-page illustrated report pointing out lots of typical problems (rusty rail, reversed wiring, cracked cement, etc.). We didn't find many serious problems that [...]
Tax Sale Value Is Confusing to Owner A reader is confused about how to value a property that was bought at a tax sale. Q: My former step-dad purchased a property in 2018 at a tax sale. Since my mother had already passed, I assumed he bought it in his own name. I’ve recently been [...]
Condo Reserves: Buyer Beware Read the first part of this story, Condo Reserves: A Growing Issue. A few weeks ago, we wrote about condo and co-op reserves and the new Florida State law. This new law, passed in the wake of the Surfside collapse in 2021, mandates condo and co-op buildings that are at least [...]
Buying a Condo vs. a Co-op Is it a good idea to buy a co-op rather than a condo? What does it mean when the co-op has been listed for nearly a year without selling? Q: We are wondering if you could provide us with some enlightenment about the ins and outs of buying a [...]
Primary House Tax Break Wife's name isn't on the deed. Can they still enjoy the full $500,000 primary house tax break? Q: I have a question about the primary residence tax break. I am selling my primary home in Chicago that I’ve owned for about 30 years. I owned another property in another state and [...]
Getting Rid of a Timeshare A reader has tried some common recommendations for getting rid of a timeshare, but is running into a brick wall. Q: I frequently read your column/advice in my local paper. I’ve read your advice about getting rid of timeshares. I tried one of your recommendations about calling the timeshare and [...]
