Video Summary

Must the will be read to the family presumably after someone dies? The answer is no, and that I am asked this question any number of times, and I don’t know of its origin unless it’s out of the movies in that I’ve been practicing 45 years and this never has been a requirement under the probate code to read the will.

Under our present probate statute a copy of the will is provided to any of the beneficiaries and gives them an opportunity to contest it. No, there is no requirement to huddle all the family or the beneficiaries around to read the will and for them to comment or whatever. It says what it says and they will get a copy of it in the mail, and it’s usually all part of the probate process which the personal representative is responsible and relies upon the lawyer to assist them in sending out copies of the will and letting them know if there are beneficiaries, and if so letting them know how much they are to receive or the will will state how much they are.

So if you would like to probate a will or if you would like to create a will, give me a call at 727-847-2288.

Video Summary

Tenancy a substitute for a will. The answer is, is I don’t know if you put in your will that you wanted your joint tenant to receive it, the document that, provided that you own it as joint tenants would override whatever provisions you put in your will.

Having your documents with beneficiaries or joint tenants is all part of estate planning. You go through and I ask in an estate planning conference, “Who do you want to receive these assets?” Then I go through and say, “Well, how are they titled?” Then with that, that’s why you call it estate planning. If you hold it jointly with them, that means you have a joint interest, a half interest, or a lifetime interest in the property.

I wouldn’t necessarily call a joint tenancy a substitute for a will. It’s all part of the estate planning process and assets that are held as joint tenants with right of survivorship automatically pass to the survivor. If you’d like to do some estate planning, we’ll address all of these issues. My phone number’s 727-847-2288.

Video Summary

Is there a statute of limitations on mortgage loans left over after a foreclosure? The answer is yes. The Floyd legislature changed law several years ago that said that the lender must file an action for a deficiency judgment within one year of the date of the foreclosure sale. So therefore they have one year in which to bring an action for this deficiency judgment. If they got a judgment several years ago before the statute, this may not be applicable. If you have questions, email me at q@rdwaller.com or on social media, it’s #wallerlegal, or call me at 727-847-2288.

Video Summary

Foreclosure. Foreclosure is the legal process or the lawsuit that is filed to enforce a mortgage or lien by the lender or the person holding the lien who is owed money. It is an action to take away or to repossess the property upon which the lien is against. This results in what they call a judicial sale, which means that the property can be sold. If you have a lien or a note and mortgage which the person has failed to pay you, and that you would like to have it foreclosed, you can give me a call at 727-847-2288.

Also, if you have any questions that you would like to pose, if you go to q@rdwaller.com, send me any questions and we’ll be glad to respond to them. On Facebook, if you go to #wallerlegal, those posts, they will be responded to. We would be delighted to provide you more information about foreclosure. Again, give me a call at 727-847-2288.

Video Summary

Are there any alternatives to foreclosure? The answer is yes. You can sell the property and pay off the mortgage, which is if the mortgage is more than what the property is worth, that’s called a short sale. Another method of doing this is to give a deed back to the lender. This is called a deed in lieu of foreclosure. These are primary ways of avoiding a foreclosure, alternative to foreclosures, and it’s recommended by if you’re a lender, a private lender, and you wish to take back the property is to try and work out something with the borrower wherein they would convey the property back to you with the deed in lieu of foreclosure.

If you have any questions, email me at Q@RDWaller.com about this topic or any topic. On social media, it’s #WallerLegal. Or give me a call at 727-847-2288.