Family fights over ownership of mother's home

Q. I had been living with my mom for the past 12 years in the house she has owned for at least the last 20 years. She has always told me the house would be mine when she died. She also gave me a quitclaim deed a couple years ago signing the house over to me and told me to record it after she was gone. I have made many repairs and put much of my own money in this place.

My mom died a few months ago and I recorded the deed. I thought everything was fine until I got a call from my sister telling me I would have to move. She said the house was left to me and my four siblings and unless I could buy them out, the house would be sold and each of us would receive one-fifth of the sales proceeds.

I told her about the quitclaim deed but my sister said it was no good. She said Mom put the house in a trust many years ago and the trust would take precedence.

I can't believe this is happening. There is no way I can buy my siblings out as I am only able to work part time and can barely make ends meet as it is. I cannot afford to find another place. Any help you could give me would be greatly appreciated.

A. Without examining the documents I cannot offer an opinion on where you legally stand. However, I will offer a few thoughts.

If Mom put the property in trust many years ago and executed a quitclaim deed a couple years ago, it would appear the property is in her trust and the terms of her trust will control. However, if she executed the quitclaim deed not personally, but as the trustee of her trust, you could arguably be the owner. If she executed the quitclaim deed personally, the trust is likely the legal titleholder, which I'm guessing is what occurred.

A quitclaim deed conveys whatever interest the grantor has in the property, to the grantee. If the property was in her trust, she had no personal interest in the property to convey to you.

It's possible your mom meant for you to have the house because of the money and effort you contributed to the property but that she forgot she conveyed the property into the trust many years prior. Who prepared the quitclaim deed? If it was an attorney, he or she should have determined the titleholder to the property prior to preparing the deed.

I strongly suggest you consult with a real estate attorney to determine where you stand.

Q. My husband and I leased a property about three years ago with an option to buy. We are now ready to purchase the property as it has appreciated quite a bit and some of our rent money each month went toward the purchase price.

We informed the owner of our intentions but he told us he is selling the property to someone else. He would not give us any other details. We asked why he was not honoring our agreement but all he would say was we no longer had the right to purchase the property.

What do we do now? If he sells it to someone else, do we lose the money we were supposedly getting each month toward the purchase price? Can he decide just to not sell to us?

A. Run, don't walk, to a real estate attorney experienced in these matters. He or she will review your agreement and if the attorney determines you have the right to purchase the property, he or she will likely record a lis pendens against the property. This recording tells the world that litigation is pending involving this property.

More importantly, it will most likely prevent the current owner from selling the property until the issue regarding your rights under your agreement are resolved.

• Send your questions to attorney Tom Resnick, 345 N. Quentin Road, Palatine, IL 60067, by email to tdr100@hotmail.com or call (847) 359-8983.