Inherited Farm

[hpm08161947]

Many years ago - at the death of my father in law - he left the farm to his 5 children - there was no division of the farm - just 5 names added to the deed. To this day it remains this way except we are all much much older. We have all discussed dividing it but wonder what the consequences are if we do not. One of the siblings has said that if the eldest passes first (she has 5 children) that there will then be 9 equal owners - others say that this is not the case but that her children would be 1/25 owners. This all probably depends on the state (we are in NC) - but I suspect several of you have experience and knowledge of this matter. I would appreciate any input you folks have.

Thanks

 

[kjones]

I think you guys had better get this sorted out, written up by an attorney and recorded with your county records office before it becomes a problem. I'm not saying it will, but there has been plenty of ugly estate fights, so why not head it off.

 

[hpm08161947]

Well - that really is why I am asking - just to get a feel for what has happened to others - it is sometimes difficult to get 5 old brothers and sisters to agree with what to do with "Daddy's Farm".

 

[3MR]

I think you need to get with an estate lawyer in your area, even if you have to do it on your own just to get a few answers. I definitely wouldnt wait to get this worked out.

 

[Bez>]

Issues of this type show up on this board several times a year. Sometimes these issues truly create strong enemies within the family.

I think you need to do a search here on this board with reference to inheritances and farms.

You will read about a whole bunch of horror stories. I fear yours will be added within a short time.

There are ways to sort this out. I can think of a couple - but I am not prepared to go into it - this is YOUR place and you need to be ready for trouble which sooner or later will stop looming on the horizon and instead come to roost on your front door step.

Recommend you do this soonest or someone is going to be very unhappy - an inevitable result of poor and certainly dangerous succession planning.

Remember - a will - no matter how it is written - can be and often is - challenged. Remember, no matter how the estate is set up - anyone has the right to challenge it.

Are you prepared for this? Hope so - because sooner or later it is coming.

Get your lawyer, your accountant, your financial advisor and your family involved asap. You need all of them involved if you plan to do this right. It is not always cheap - but you will get what you pay for.

Money spent today may actually save / make you money in the coming years

Best thoughts and good luck,

Bez>

 

[MissouriExile]

As others have stated the legal issues need to be cleared up professionally.

I suggest that you think about how a family can be torn to shreds when such things are left to fester.

I have seen brothers and sisters that didn't speak for many years and went to their graves with anger in their hearts over just such issues. I know that many others have similar stories to relate.

Don't wait till it's too late. Get your siblings to agree on an outside professional to advise you all as a group.

Jon

 

[Ryder]

Each of the children should be 1/25 owners. But that is assuming you 5 had the legal thing done and you each had divided interest. I think.

Do get a lawyer to sort this out. Even if some are not ready to take action, if you get the paper work set up to the point they only have to sign their name to get it defined and legal, they may then go along with it.

 

[fit2btied]

Typically, each survivor's share would be divided among their personal survivors. You definitely need to seek professional advice sooner, rather than later. The longer you wait, the more time the courts will take helping you solve your problem and the more likely it will become that your farm will belong to a pack of lawyers to settle legal fees.

 

[Jogeephus]

You got some good advice so far. Also, you need to work together as a family so every one of the heirs will be informed. Have a sit down and discuss this with and express your concerns and options. Also, this meeting should only include the actual heirs. No inlaws, outlaws, children or grandchildren cause it doesn't concern them - only the 5.

If you are wanting to keep the land together without splitting it, a good option is to form a Partnership or an LLC.

I suspect your biggest problem is gonna be convincing the person with the 5 kids they will only get 1/25th. My guess is this person is gonna give you problems. The majority of all wills and such are distributed "per stirpes". This means per branch of family.

If you would like some extremely valuable information which you have already paid for with tax dollars go to this link and click on the Adobe file. The authors here now charge a lot of money for this advice in lectures and such. It is geared toward forestland but the principles are the same. This stuff isn't complicated its just something you don't do everyday.

Good luck and hope this helps.

http://www.srs.fs.usda.gov/pubs/161

 

[Anonymous]

anyone can only will, give, or sell what he legally owns. If he owns 1/5 that is what he can only will away that amount. But do get the attorneys involved, everyone will be happier knowing exactly what will happen.
I am a Real Estate Broker for 0ver 20 years not an attorney

 

[Frankie]

Many years ago - at the death of my father in law - he left the farm to his 5 children - there was no division of the farm - just 5 names added to the deed. To this day it remains this way except we are all much much older. We have all discussed dividing it but wonder what the consequences are if we do not. One of the siblings has said that if the eldest passes first (she has 5 children) that there will then be 9 equal owners - others say that this is not the case but that her children would be 1/25 owners. This all probably depends on the state (we are in NC) - but I suspect several of you have experience and knowledge of this matter. I would appreciate any input you folks have.

Thanks

In OK if the land is not divided legally, when the owner dies each heir receives an equal portion of EACH ACRE. My mother divided the place among her kids, if she hadn't, each one of us would have owned a share of each acre, not a specific number of acres in a specific plot. But my kids could only have inherited a portion of MY share, not a share of the entire place.

When the two ladies died who owned the land we live on, my dad was able to buy shares of each acre from some of the heirs. I think there were 12 at that time. Each time one of them died, their children inherited their portion, further increasing the number of owners. One of the heirs was an attorney and he was able to eventually get quit claim deeds from each of the heirs and sold the entire place to my Dad.

I'm sure different states have different rules, but the sooner you get this settled, the fewer people will be involved. Good luck....

 

[Jogeephus]

As Frankie said, "add a person add a problem". Though it is extremely important to talk with an attorney, I think you are well served by doing some homework first. This way, the attorney doesn't have to teach you stuff - at big bucks - and you can ask educated questions.

 

[vs_cattle]

Problems like these can open the door to rip a family apart I agree with others get it fixed before it can become a problem
good luck

 

[GMN]

Many years ago - at the death of my father in law - he left the farm to his 5 children - there was no division of the farm - just 5 names added to the deed. To this day it remains this way except we are all much much older. We have all discussed dividing it but wonder what the consequences are if we do not. One of the siblings has said that if the eldest passes first (she has 5 children) that there will then be 9 equal owners - others say that this is not the case but that her children would be 1/25 owners. This all probably depends on the state (we are in NC) - but I suspect several of you have experience and knowledge of this matter. I would appreciate any input you folks have.

Thanks

Yep that sounds like it could be a very tricky situation, do any of you run the farm, does one of you have more interest in the farm, where one of you could buy the other 4 out? Really I think if this could be done now, it could save ya all alot of grief in the long run. If no one has a specific interest, i sure would go and see a professional estate planner, and see what the other options are.

GMN

 

[Chuckie]

In Tennessee, if a farm is left to two or ten people, and one wants to sell, and the others want to keep it, the farm must sell. If there is a dispute over the price, then the one that wants to retain it has to pay for their half, private treaty, match the highest offer, or be the highest bidder at the auction.

I hate to see lawyers come into anything. Mostly family matters. Seems they end up owning the property, or sucking the blood out of everyone.
Chuckie

 

[Jogeephus]

I don't care for em either Chuckie. I know some good ones and could not do without them. But some are really dumb, lazy and dishonest. The trick is to do your homework yourself before you ever have to talk to one. After all, this is probably one of the most important things you'll ever do in your life so it warrants a few hours or days worth of homework before you ever talk to an attorney.

 

[TheBullLady]

I'm also a farm and ranch Realtor, and have come across this problem more times than I care to recount.

Here in Texas, if five people inherit land ( with a will that's been probated) they are five joint owners. Which means each of the five have the same share. When one of the five dies, and leaves a will, whomever they have willed their "share" to will be a 1/5th owner. Of course if there are more than one heirs, the share is divided accordingly.

Inevitably one or more of the five owners will want to sell their share. The obvious would be to hire a real estate appraiser, and let the others buy out their share. Rarely does that get done without everyone getting mad at each other, and then the attorneys are the only ones that can sort it out. I've seen deals where the family couldn't decide who owned what, so the courts "partitioned" the land off. The one I was privy to took nine years of court battles to do.

I would also suggest all five get together and decide what they see the future of the farm being. Nows the time to figure it out, before it gets more complicated.