Dad getting older.. what to do with his house

[Anonymous]

My father owns his home free and clear. He’s still in “average health” but I was thinking over thanksgiving. Should I add my name onto the deed. Or should I hire an attorney and place the home in a trust or llc.

I don’t own my own yet. & I’m not sure how me adding myself to his property deed would affect my fha loan on my house/mortgage process.

Has anyone done anything like this with aging parents?

[Anonymous]

There are multiple threads on this topic already. Are you the same person posting repeatedly? Look at this thread in particular. It is only 2-3 rows down from your post.

https://www.dcurbanmom.com/jforum/posts/list/929976.page

[Anonymous]

This is not a real estate question, it’s an estate planning question. No, you should not add your name to the deed. You should make sure your father has a valid will and power of attorney so that you can help him as he gets older and distribute his assets when he dies. Find a reputable estate planning lawyer to draw up documents and make sure you both understand what they are for.

[Anonymous]

Sorry I should have looked first. No I am not reposting. Why would one do that. Sorry

[Anonymous]

It’s better to inherit the house or sale proceeds. You don’t want ownership because that comes with tax obligations.

[Anonymous]

Is he of a sound mind? What does he want to do? I find this slightly disturbing that you are thinking about taking his house in your name but not telling him that this is what he wants! My FIL is almost 77 and lives alone, works 5 days a week, and there is no way his kids would ever dream about appropriating his house even in their thoughts.

[[e-mail]]

OP, ignore the mean people. Estate planning conversations are not off-limits. After my aunt (no spouse, no children) was diagnosed with severe dementia, I was so glad we had her paperwork in order which allowed me to transfer her to assisted living, sell her condo, place the proceeds into an investment account, pay her taxes, become her Social Security Representative Payee, and now cover her monthly expenses from her investment account. I know you are not trying to appropriate his house, you are trying to look out for him.

You need a valid Financial Power of Attorney, which is a little bit of a dangerous document because it's valid immediately so he needs to trust you completely. As soon as he signs the POA, you will be able to act as him in most financial and legal capacities. Then, he needs a will drawn up so succession of assets is clear. The idea is to have these items before there are problems, because problems can happen suddenly and it is much easier to deal with things when you've planned for them.

Have you ever spoken with your dad about his financial situation? Can he cover his needs? Does he have any other potential inheritors (spouse, children) that you want to coordinate with? I commend you for looking out for him and recommend you start with some conversations and then some research into his current estate planning documents.

Good luck!

[Anonymous]

You should have an estate planning conversation with him and a professional but I doubt adding your name to the deed makes sense.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:It’s better to inherit the house or sale proceeds. You don’t want ownership because that comes with tax obligations.

Agree. One big issue is that if you put your name on the deed now, you are equally liable for taxes on the property. Even if he can't pay them, you become liable. Also, if he is late, it will affect your credit. If you inherit when he passes, you acquire the property with a stepped-up basis so you will owe less if/when you decide to sell the property. If you have your name on the deed, if/when you sell, the profits will be measured against what he bought it for rather than the market value when you inherited the property.

If you don't understand a lot of this, then you and your father should consult with an estate planner to help you figure out to handle his affairs, while he is still mentally competent enough to make reasonable and responsible decisions. You really don't want to deal with this when he has started to decline. I am fortunate that my father did get his affairs in order about 20 years before he passed. The last 5-7 years, he would not have been competent to do so and Mom is not particularly financially cognizant. Now, in her later years, she doesn't have to worry about the estate because the paperwork is all in order. Every few years, my brother or I talk with her about her finances and whether she wants to make any changes.

[Anonymous]

You should let your dad handle this. Dear God.

[Anonymous]

No way. You want the stepped up value

[Anonymous]

Sounds like you are greedy and its a money grab. No.

[Anonymous]

Some people here are so MEAN! I don't know whether it is because some of you have siblings, so you might want to look less "greedy" to your parents now and get more later. I am single child and my parents and I both know clearly that everything is going to me, so it is very natural we had estate planning attorney in my parents early 60s. All of us have the same goal here: less hassle, more money

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Some people here are so MEAN! I don't know whether it is because some of you have siblings, so you might want to look less "greedy" to your parents now and get more later. I am single child and my parents and I both know clearly that everything is going to me, so it is very natural we had estate planning attorney in my parents early 60s. All of us have the same goal here: less hassle, more money

OP here, yes- only child here also.

Mom passed about 10 years ago. So everything is eventually coming to me anyways. Just want to prepare.