How do I purchase my mother's home from her estate with there being three beneficiaries?
A fellow caregiver asked...
How do I buy my mother's house from her estate? Would I pay total appraised value or one-third of it due to there being three children of which I am one?
Expert Answer
Steve Weisman hosts the nationally syndicated radio show A Touch of Grey, heard on more than 50 stations, including WABC in New York City and KRLA in Los Angeles. He is a practicing lawyer specializing in estate planning and is admitted to practice before the United States Supreme Court. He's a public speaker and commentator who has appeared on many radio and television shows throughout the country, and he's the legal editor of Talkers magazine, the preeminent trade publication of talk radio. His latest book is The Truth About Avoiding Scams.
In order to purchase the home from your mother's estate, the executor of her estate would have to agree, on behalf of the estate to sell the home to you for an agreed price. Generally, the price for the sale would be the fair market value of the property, but assuming you are a one-third beneficiary of your mother's estate, you are correct that you would only have to actually pay two-third of that figure because you are a one-third beneficiary of the estate.