Buying Property from only living heir, did not go to probate.

[Victor Noriega]

Hi BP, I have come across a deal for a property where the owner of record on the deed is deceased.  My direct marketing campaign led me to the daughter of the deceased owner.  There was no will, and the daughter says all other heirs are also deceased.  The daughter has tried to sell the property before, I verified with the title company she was working with.  

The issue was that the daughter did not have enough money to go through probate.  This is what she told me, and this is a new situation for me.  The daughter is highly motivated to sell, and there is a potential $19k upside to wholesaling this property.  

So how can we move forward?  

If i paid to initialize probate on the daughter's behalf, how can I guarantee, that she will sell to me?  

I cannot place any lien on the property as the deed owner does not owe me anything.  And the title company said, the process to get the title transferred can take up to 6 months.  

Could I place the property under contract for over a 6 months, but if another living heir is found, then I could potentially lose out.  Any Probate experts out there that have experienced this situation?  

[Guy Gimenez]

@Victor Noriega

I frequently run into this very scenario. Get the home under contract with the only known heir signing.  Then get the contract to the title company so they can run their search and tell you exactly what they will need from the heir to close the deal. You don't need to be an expert because the only opinion that counts in this situation is the title examiner's. Use them to your benefit. If the contract isn't valid because you find there are other heirs, then  you have what you need (information) to get the ball rolling on the other heirs.

To answer you other question, yes, you can set an extended closing date but you can't have an option period that exceeds 180 days or the contract becomes executory in nature. Just reserve yourself the right to terminate using other language in special provisions. If you find there are other heirs, the contract is moot anyway since the other heirs have not executed the contract.