Need Advice Inherited Property

[Andrew Jambor]

Greetings BP!

I have a friend who is in need of some advice and since I'm a newbie in real estate investing, I could use some advice from this awesome community.

Here are the details from my understanding:

My friend lives in CT and inherited a condo in FL (Melbourne) from her father who unexpectedly passed away a year ago.

She and her brother both own a stake in the property (80% hers/20% his). The property is paid off and she has been paying the association fees and taxes on the property. She would like to buy out her brother's share of the property but doesn't know how much the property is worth or the steps needed complete this. I advised her to find a real estate agent and an attorney who specializes in real estate in that area so she could get some professional advice. She would like to rent the property out while she is in CT. I also mentioned that she could create a business entity (LLC) and put the property in the name of the entity for both liability protection and tax benefits.

So my questions are:

1.) Does my advice make sense?

2.) Does anyone have any recommendations on real estate attorneys and real estate agents in the Melbourne area?

3.) Does anyone know of any insurance agents in that area as well (she mentioned that she did not know what the rates are in FL for homeowners insurance)?

Any advice is appreciated. Thank you!