Posted on: 18th Dec, 2012 10:07 pm
My husband and his Ex-wife had a Joint Tenancy with Right of Survivorship of a property in the state of Florida. The got married/ Divorced in California. After divorce my husband took care of the payments, and he had been paying taxes as well. My husband passed away few years ago, I've been paying taxes and all that. I need to know if I have a right to sell the property.
Also, if the was a will, was the home to be left to you, or your kids, or previous marriage kids? May have to go into probate and have the court decide who gets what out of the property.
nikki, unless you signed a quit claim deed (or interspousal transfer deed) at the time of divorce, ownership automatically passed to you upon the death of the other joint tenant.
you should contact an attorney because i'm sure his new family members won't go down without a fight.
you should contact an attorney because i'm sure his new family members won't go down without a fight.
Hi Nikki,
Unless your name is mentioned on the property deed, you won't be considered as an owner of the property. In such a case, you won't be able to sell off the property. Apart from that, you have mentioned that your husband and his ex-wife had a Joint Tenancy with Right of Survivorship. If nothing on deed has changed, then his ex-wife will be considered as the sole owner of the property.
Take care.
Unless your name is mentioned on the property deed, you won't be considered as an owner of the property. In such a case, you won't be able to sell off the property. Apart from that, you have mentioned that your husband and his ex-wife had a Joint Tenancy with Right of Survivorship. If nothing on deed has changed, then his ex-wife will be considered as the sole owner of the property.
Take care.
Generally, the survivor in that case would become the sole owner. However, since your husband continued to pay on the property after the divorce, it is possible he was awarded the property as his sole property in the divorce judgment. I would get a copy of the divorce judgment and see what it says with regard to the property. If it says nothing, then the property is owned by the ex-wife. You still have options. You can ask for "contribution" which is basically your money back you have spent on the property. The other is "adverse possession", which allows you to take over the ownership of the property after a certain time, usually 7 years. Check with a local real estate attorney.
Thanks for sharing your opinion jheard!! :) That was really helpful!!