Before same-sex marriage became legal across the land, some states (MA, NH, DE specifically, I think, but I could be wrong) enacted legislation to protect unmarried same sex partners in this exact situation and it applies equally to unmarried hetero couples as well.However, children - particularly minor children - have some protection here as well and a court would not necessarily ignore them in favor of an unmarried partner, particularly if the house was the sole asset of the decedent.A married spouse usually receives all assets of the decedent and if the girlfriend can claim common law (or if it was already established prior to his death) through the state they were living in, she could receive it all.That said, I do not believe the mortgage company will permit a dead person to remain on a mortgage once probate is settled, so the house would have to move into a trust or to somebody else's name and the ex-wife would then be able to remove her name from it and move on.So yeah - I'm thinking out loud, but the above are all issues or question I would ask a SUPER COMPETENT attorney.

@John De Gennaro, Yes, I love Lending Robot, and it has been working great.

They say that doing one in Delaware is even better. 

The bank acted as the nominal lender while the non-bank entity was the de facto lender – marketing, funding, and collecting the loan.

@Miguel De DiosYes I have heard of them and I know they do or have used IRA Services Trust Company to custody self-directed IRA assets.

This is the world of Delaware Statutory Trusts. 

Low Income Housing creditsCost seg on your properties if they cost over $500,000 and you are a "real estate pro"If you have lots of rentals or other real estate investments you need to think about grouping them together as one activity to get around the passive activity rules.Write off as much in repairs as possible vs capitalizing to avoid depreciation recapture on sale (consider each item carefully and also consider the de minimis safe harbor election)Shift income to lower tax brackets by paying your children ---ONLY IF THEY HELP WITH THE BUSINESS (type up job description and duties to memorialize this)Tons more!

I was wondering if anyone has any recommendations / referrals on RE agents in the Delaware County area or even Philly?

Typically the lower tax areas are more rural and have less services and lower taxes.In DE, real estate taxes are much lower, as low as 1/10%. 

Is it lower in New York or Delaware?