Deed and Will

[Ann]

Four of my sisters and I have been deeded property by our parents. Both parents have passed on and after viewing the will it stated that the property was to be sold and divided equally amongst the 9 children. Since the property was already deeded to the four of us, do we have to abide by the will and sell the property to be split with the other five family members? It seems that we shouldn't have to since the property was deeded a few years after the will was made and don't the four of us own the property legally. The other five don't care about the property it's just about money. And if we have to sell, how do we recoup all the money we put into the house, taxes, utilities, fixing it up, maintenance. It doesn't seem right that if we have to split it 9 ways and 5 people never bothered with the property that they shouldn't have to reimburse the others for costs incurred.

Thank you for any assistance.

[Thesa]

An attorney is your best bet - if the property changed ownership prior to the passing you may have a good case to keep it, but the attorney is the one to tell you.

[Ann]

Thank you, the property was deeded over 10 years ago and the passings were earlier this year. The original will was over 13 years ago and the changing of the deed took place a few years after the will was created.

[klrpnda]

Definitely find an Attorney to speak to. He/She will tell you if you have a case or not.

[drewnick]

This is also going to vary by state. While in one state, you may have a case, and another in maybe already laid out in the statute.