What should I do regarding these bills.

What should I do regarding these bills.

Member since 2020 · 23 posts · 5 votes

OK, so am an heir to a property that belonged to my father. Probate has not started.

Waiting for the courts to reopen so my brother and I can actually own the house and sell it. There is a person living in the house who is not paying rent and does not want to leave. You can read about it here and here. 

But there's more. I am paying a little over $450 a month out of my own pocket for gas, electricity, water, sewer, garbage, gardener, and insurance. They are all still in my father's name, but I get the bills and pay them.

The only thing I'm not paying is cable and internet because those are not essential. 

I know some of these bills would need to be paid if she was living there or not - like taxes and insurance. Other's are necessary to maintain the value of the house, like the gardener.

But I have been advised to pay all the bills in order to keep her name from being on anything so that if it ends up in court, my case for evicting her will be easier to win. Is that true, or does it not matter?

What would happen if I informed the utility companies that my father was deceased and told her to put the bills in her name if she still wanted those services?

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  • Member since 2019 · 87 posts · 54 votes
    6y

    Hey @Christopher Olsen

    Different states have different eviction laws.
    I would defiantly consult with an eviction attorney in your area to get accurate guidance on this. 

    There are procedures like giving notice that are better done sooner then later. 

  • Member since 2020 · 23 posts · 5 votes
    6y

    I emailed my probate lawyer today and he said to keep paying them. Of course, for him the issue was that if she stops paying then they would put a lien on the house. 

    My thought was that by making her pay some of the bills, she might be inclined to move out since she is getting a pretty good deal right now - Recently remodeled 3br/2ba, rent free all utilities paid. 

    And I can't give her notice, apparently, because I do not actually own the house yet. Our probate hearing is not until July. 

  • Real Estate Broker · Temecula, CA · Member since 2014 · 994 posts · 783 votes
    6y

    what is listed in the lease?  I fyou are month to month, you can change the lease- with notice, and let them know that they now need to pay. 

  • Member since 2020 · 23 posts · 5 votes
    6y

    There is no lease or rental agreement. The person had been staying at the house since September when my dad died in January. Has not made much effort to find a place to live in spite of my brother and I telling her that we want to put the house up for sale at the first available opportunity, which would hopefully be this July when we are named administrators to the estate. 

    Our probate lawyer has told us that we cannot enter into any contract (i.e. rental agreement) regarding the house since we do not actually own it yet. If the terms "grey area" and "in limbo" were in the dictionary, there should be a picture of me and my brother next to it. 

  • Investor · Philadelphia, PA · Member since 2016 · 2k+ posts · 1k+ votes
    6y

    @Christopher Olsen talk to an eviction attorney. Your probable attorney probably doesn’t know enough about eviction details to make a good recommendation.

    Just because there’s no written lease doesn’t mean there isn’t an agreement. Verbal leases are a thing and defer to state law for the details. Most states require 30-60-day notice to vacate, or a 3-5- day pay or quit notice of rent hasn’t been paid. You should be able to start the eviction process as your fathers ‘agent’ managing the property. BUT, those are details you need to ask your eviction attorney.

    These things never get better with time. Good luck!

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