Have you and your siblings inherited a property? Do you know what to do if one of you wants to sell the property but the other sibling or siblings don’t? It can be a real hassle and can even lead to conflicts or legal issues that you’d probably rather avoid.
When a single person inherits a house or property, the decision-making process is a simple one. That person can do whatever they want with it. But when you have two siblings or multiple siblings that inherit a property? Now you have the potential for competing concerns and interests. Ideally, siblings would ultimately decide to make the same decision, but anyone who has siblings can tell you it doesn’t always work that way.
If you and your sibling or siblings have inherited a Kansas City house but find yourselves in disagreement, you have some options to consider. Let’s take a closer look at what you can do to force the sale of an inherited property in Kansas City, Missouri.
Probate and Can Siblings Force The Sale Of An Inherited Property
You’ll Want To Understand Probate
If you’re going to sell an inherited house or property, the most important requirement is that the sale of the property goes through probate. Depending on the property value, you may be able to get a summary probate. Otherwise, you’ll have to go through the full version that involves courts and fees.
Summary probate can either happen when the previous property owner’s death happened over two years ago or when the property equals less than $75,000. Otherwise, you’re likely looking at formal probate, which means you’ll need the court’s permission as well as the permission of any siblings who also own the property in order to complete a sale. When all parties are on the same page, that makes it easy. But if siblings disagree on what to do with the house, things can get complicated, to the point where lawyers start to get involved.
Try to Buy Out the House
If the house has been inherited by you and one another sibling, it’s fair to assume you both own half of it. If one of you wants to sell but the other wants to keep the property, the easiest solution might be for one of you to buy the other one out.
It can be done very simply. You’d finance half the value of the property and then transfer full ownership from the person opting out to the person maintaining ownership. Or you can do the same thing with one sibling paying the other one in cash. Once that happens, the sibling who maintains ownership can do what they want with the house or property. And any profits would be theirs to keep unless there was some arrangement in the sale that allowed for the other sibling to get some share.
Make a Private Arrangement
If you or your sibling can’t qualify for financing and you don’t have the money to make a lump payment, one sibling can effectively act as a lender for the other. That sounds like it can lead to some uncomfortable conversations, and it certainly can, but if one of you wants out of the homeownership, it’s a way to make it happen.
Basically, the sibling who wants out would create a promissory note to the sibling who wants to retain ownership for their share of the home’s appraised value. Then, they would pay in monthly installments with interest over the course of a predetermined timeframe. It gives the opting-out sibling a chance to remove themselves from the process and it gives the remaining sibling some extra income.
Rent Out the House While You Decide
Even if you and your sibling aren’t in agreement about what to do with the inherited house in Kansas City, you can decide to give it time and rent the house out in the meantime. This not only creates extra income but it also helps to soften the blow of any potential disagreement, kicking the can down the road, so to speak.
You and your sibling could rent out the property and split the monthly income, or you might decide that one of you acts as the landlord and gets a higher cut as they’ll have to deal with tenants and problems. Whatever you decide, make sure that you are clear with one another legally and have everything recorded in documents.
Take It Out
Emotions and attachment can be two of the biggest enemies when it comes to owning an inherited property with your siblings, especially if one or more of you wants to sell it. If you grew up in the house or just have fond memories of being there, sentimentality has a tendency to get in the way of financial considerations and facts. That can lead to a lot of frustration and ultimately disagreement or even anger between siblings.
At the end of the day, your siblings are your family and it’s always going to be a bit tricky when you mix family and a financial decision. Whatever the thought process, try to remember to balance those high emotions against the realization you’re all family and it’s in everyone’s best interests to find an amicable solution.
You and your sibling or siblings are all on the same team, ultimately. The last thing you want is for the sale (or non-sale) of inherited property to be the reason there is a rift between family. And it’s hard to think that was the intention of the person who left the property to you in the first place.
Sell As-Is to a Cash Buyer Like Offer House
When you and your sibling inherit a home in Kansas City, MO, it can lead to some stressful discussions and potentially fraught situations, especially if you’re not on the same page about what to do with the property. Siblings have fallen out over situations just like this.
One way to prevent all of the hassles and headaches would be to sell the house as-is to a cash buyer like Offer House. We’ve been buying inherited homes and properties in the Kansas City, Missouri area for years. We understand the probate process so we can help you handle it and even get involved. We have dedicated probate attorneys on call who know how to complete the process quickly and cheaply.
That also means we can close the process quickly and move on to buy your inherited house from you for cash. We buy houses in Kansas City for cash and we buy houses as-is. That means we will buy the inherited house from you in its current condition. If there are repairs needed, we will handle them. If the house needs a good cleaning, we’ll make it our responsibility. And if there are financial concerns wrapped up in the property, we can take a look and see if we can make them our concerns so you can walk away with cash in your pocket.
Also, if you and your siblings live elsewhere, we can make the transaction easy from a distance so you don’t have to pay for costly travel back and forth. We can make the entire process simple and easy with the added bonus of being able to pay you in cash for your inherited house.
Contact us today to let us help you sell your inherited house and give you cash for it!