Her home is out of state and she is afraid if she sells her house she will "have nothing." We have been moving her things up to our house, and she has been aware that the reason we were doing this was to sell her home. When the time actually came to sign the contract, she down right refused. I can use the POA to sell it. Do I do so and not tell her? She will be SO upset and angry if I tell her the truth.
As POA for my dad, I've had similar situations where I've had to keep things a little fuzzy, without actually lying, to avoid making an inevitable situation more painful than it had to be.
Good luck to you.
When sick a couple years back I watched Property Bros constantly. Recalling that when a couple was buying a house, what convinced the seller to accept the offer was a heartfelt note from the potential buyers...and maybe after they had moved in they invited the prior owner back to visit? Maybe that would help?
Also...I had a wonderful client whose house was a hidden treasure in a wooded area...the views out the windows of trees etc were so precious and she had moved in with her husband because of it years back. He was gone. Her health was diminishing...she couldn't stay...and when speaking with her daughter she loved the idea I suggested...of taking pictures of the views out the windows that could be blown up and put in her new place. Not the same...but the best that could be done under the circumstances. Legally, you've heard from others...
Your situation is almost identical to our situation. Mom "gently" moved into my house 2 years ago for a short vacation here, which gradually turned into 2 years. We both know this is better for her, and she has finally agreed to list her house with a family friend/realtor.... but we still have to "go through things" and "prepare" it to sell, actually list it; and I am just dreading going there to do the clearing.
Mom and Dad lived in there home since the early 60's and while they didn't build it, Dad did lots of projects around the house, so it's very sentimental to Mom. Dad passed away 15 yrs ago and all the neighbors have sold and moved.
I am the POA and will have to read it again for all the points brought up in the comments below. I just kind of dread having to go to her home three hours away and start this process, and cannot wait till it's all done, and worried she may do something similar as your mother.
Wish you well and that your mom agrees soon. Big hugs to you!
Your POA won' Help you unless YOUR NAME is on IT ALL...Have a Ball. I am So Sorry......
She gave her word, she likes the people, and if the worst ever should come to the *very* worst... there are other houses.
Poor mother. Saying goodbye to important bits of your life is hard, and God knows I hate moving house as much the next person; but c'est la vie. Next chapter, let's hope it's a great one!
The financial element came into effect immediately, yes, in the it allows you to act on your mother's behalf as her representative. So she can make the decisions and you do the running around and signing, that's fine - your signature can be accepted pp your mother's. But, then time moves on and you get to the point where she can no longer make decisions - she is mentally incapacitated/legally incompetent - and at *that* time your DPOA allows you to act on her behalf but without her authorisation, in her best interests, and as far as practicable in line with her consistent, established preferences. It seems you haven't got to point B yet.
You say that she is "more than" mentally competent. Mm. In that case, you cannot make these decisions without her consent. There is a but to this, though. If she is more than mentally competent, then she has to act like it, same as everyone else. She changed her mind when it came to the signature. As a consenting adult, she must now justify that change of mind and explain her better idea.
I know you don't want to upset her, and I know these discussions can be stressful and painful, but your mother expects to be treated like an adult. So - do. You call it stubborn? I call it breaking her word and creating serious inconvenience to others. Does she consider that an acceptable way for anyone to behave?
Does she herself know and like this neighbour who'd like to buy the place for her daughter?
Maybe you can persuade mom if you present her with the costs. But, as mentioned, could backfire and she would want to return home.
If your mom is mentally incompetent, you still have to look at your PoA document. Not all PoAs are written the same way, so please read it carefully or have the attorney who created it to review it or hire another lawyer to do so. Your PoA doc must specifically say you have the authority to sell the house. If not, you cannot sell it.
I suggest talk to an eldercare attorney.
Have you presented the title agency a copy of your POA to know if they will even accept it?
I sold a piece of property for my dad and it was in another state and they have specific requirements for what type of POA can be accepted and I had to get a signature on the form they sent. It took months waiting for a good day.
I was very sparse in what I told my dad, he pretends to understand and is working very hard to not have dementia, which means he argued about things that were beneficial to him and shouldn't have caused concern.
I would tell her that the value will continue to go down because an empty house deteriorates from no use. Plus what happens if a critter gets in?
Focus on how good she will feel to have that money available to help her and allow her to do as she would like, to a degree.
Best of luck. I would be relentless in getting her agreement, one less headache for you.
Do you have the number of letters from doctors. Or others, which are stated in the triggering clauses, allowing you to enforce POA? If not, you need to have those to protect yourself.
You know that when your loved one passes, the POA is no,longer in effect.
when listing agreement done, who signed off as seller with Realtor?
Usually if it’s a POA involved, the realty group will review the POA to see if it gives you full financial authority to do whatever on mom’s behalf. If that the case, you can sign and get it sold.
Now If it was your mom who signed listing, and she refused to sign off on Act of Sale documents, and this was after negotiations on sale & with earnest $ put up, the potential buyer can seek remedy from your mom as the seller & owner of the property. It would be an “opportunity lost” type of action which at worst scenario places a lien on the property for the amount of $ “lost”. Like buyer sold their home and as they could not move into your mom’s, had to rent or stay in hotel or they missed the start of school and had to place kids in private school or pay out of district fees. Or their mortgage co raised interest if deal not done within 30 days. Your not in state to necessarily get the lawsuit or go to court, so lien gets placed.
Also the Realtors will be peeved. They took on the listing in good faith and mom has exhibited bad faith. That property could well find itself redlined by other agents. It will be a beast to sell it.
Also if she has moved to your state, the tax assessor will find out & property taxes will eventually catch up to this knowledge - that the property is not her homestead- and increase dramatically. Ditto for insurance on it as her homeowners policy will be invalid. She will need to get a vacant dwelling policy & they aren’t cheap and kinda limited to being just a fire policy.
Should mom stay all not gonna sign, and should she need LTC in a NH, and neither she nor you have the $$$ to private pay, that property in another state will keep her from being eligible for Medicaid. For LTC Medicaid their home is an exempt asset BUT ONLY IF it’s their primary homestead in the state they are applying in.
These are all valid concerns. Please, please Try to make her understand the seriousness that her stubbornness can morph into.
Remind her there’s still good times ahead and can make even more great memories with you now. That her life isn’t over and it doesn’t have to be downhill from here.
Mmm. Thing is, she didn't agree, did she? And JoAnn is right - if your mother is not legally incompetent, your power of attorney cannot override her decision and you had no right to put the house on the market, much less to agree a price or close the deal.
So upset and angry, yes, I know this is incredibly hard. And I'm sorry she doesn't like it, although if I were you I'd point out that far from having nothing she'll have a lovely fat wodge of cash in the bank. But, okay, so what's her better idea? She doesn't have to like the realities, but they apply to her as much as to anyone else. What does she want to do?
If she has been declared incompetent then yes you can complete the sale.
Or you could tell her that this "nice young family would love to raise their children in the house that she raised hers" They love the house and love the neighborhood. And they love the flower garden she put in years ago.
Also mention to her that it is costing more money to keep the house empty. You are still paying property taxes, heating, insurance, possibly other utility services that are not being used.
Another option. Would she be willing to "rent" the property? If so could the contract be a "rent to own" and over the course of a year her decision making abilities may change dramatically so you would e able to sell using your POA.
All these hinge on the fact that you can reason with her, that she understands. If not then use your POA or obtain Guardianship. (but I can tell you selling property when you have guardianship is a p in the @ss...been there done that and not easy)
You can say that you read [remember this is a fib] that later in the year the housing market is going to stall out, and selling maybe impossible. Better to catch the market now, especially if there is a willing buyer outside your front door.
I was thinking about telling your Mom it is not good to leave a house vacant, etc. but then your Mom might say "move me back to my house".
Since you have financial Power of Attorney, you could step in and represent your Mom in the real estate transaction. This is in Mom's best interest to sell now. And if you feel that Mom wouldn't understand a real estate contract then that gives you a better reason to use the POA.
When my Dad was ready to sell his house, he was still able to understand the Listing Agreement and the Contract. By the time settlement came about, a month or so later, Dad was happy the house sold, but he didn't want to go to settlement [he would have fallen asleep] so I represented Dad at settlement.
Keep us updated.
Walk her through her finances, keeping the house versus the money she'd have by selling it. Talk about her care requirements and the cost, and how that sale money would help her with her care expenses. Present financial options to safely keep her money.
Ask for her opinion on how she would handle the expenses. Be supportive. I think people that age recall tough financial times of past decades and are fearful. Good luck!