A family was thrown into turmoil after the death of their mother, who left behind a paid-for house worth $180K and a little money in the bank.
A Shocking Announcement
A few years prior, the mother had announced that she intended to leave the house to her daughter Sara, who was taking care of her severely disabled son full-time. Her daughter and her disabled son lived with the mother full time as they couldn’t afford their own place. Sara was her son’s full time carer as he needed so much help.
A Nice Sentiment
The mother wanted to ensure that Sara and her son had a roof over their heads, while the rest of her children could make it on their own. The rest of the children understood where their mother was coming from but it still stung slightly. They all wondered how Sara would manage to pay the bills on the house when she wasn’t able to work.
Not a Small Sum
However, when the mother passed away, she left behind some bills outstanding, including a debt of $37K to one of her other children, who had loaned her the money to fix her plumbing and septic system and make the house more handicapped-friendly for Sara and her son. The woman was obviously happy to help her mother, sister and nephew out but it was a loan and not a gift so she did want it repaying.
She Has Proof
The woman had paperwork proving that the money was owed, but filing a claim against the estate would force the executor, the mother’s son John, to sell the house to pay the debt. It felt like the mother’s wishes and will were essentially undermining the woman’s loan and forcing her to accept that she will never be repaid as the money wasn’t readily available in the estate.
Not the Plan
This would mean that Sara and her son would have to find a new place to live, which went against the mother’s wishes. Even though, by selling the house they could buy a smaller home, perhaps slightly less suitable due to the son’s disability, but they would be able to repay the other sister and settle the debt.
The Mother’s Wishes
The mother’s will stated that Sara would get the house, but any money in the estate would be split evenly between the other four siblings. There wasn’t a whole lot of money left in the estate and certainly not enough to cover the debt repayment in full. This put the woman in a difficult position.
Could it Interfere?
This meant that technically, Sara wouldn’t get anything, and there was also the concern that a large amount of money could interfere with the government help she received. The other sister didn’t have too much sympathy for Sara but did understand that the amount of money she was allowed to receive was dictated by the benefits system. If it was over a certain threshold, the government would stop all benefit payments for her disabled son.
The Others Said NO
John and Sara were both pushing the woman not to file a claim against the estate, but the woman didn’t believe Sara would pay back the debt, as she had borrowed money before and never paid it back. The woman didn’t feel like she had a lot of other choices as no one was willing to settle the debt. She didn’t need the money right now but it was part of her long term savings plan and she didn’t understand why she had to lose out on such a large amount of money.
She’s Going to Claim
The woman decided to file a claim, which led to John and Sara calling her a greedy jerk and accusing her of ignoring what the mother wanted. However, the woman believed it was unreasonable to expect them to forget $37K and be out of pocket, even for their sister. She did however decided to knock off a quarter of the loan amount so was only claiming for $27,500 which the woman thought was a lovely gesture to her sister and nephew.
A Family Torn
The family was torn apart by this decision, and the woman wondered if they were the jerk for standing up for what they believed was rightfully owed to them. She didn’t intend to cause conflict within the family, especially so close to the death of their mother, but she couldn’t be out of pocket tens of thousands of dollars.
The Internet Responded
This person wrote, “If I were in their shoes I’d also have to file that claim. I’ve also cared for disabled relatives and understand the struggle, but there aren’t that many people I’d willingly hand over 37k too.”
More Internet Comments
Another commenter said, “How is sister who can’t get out of debt/out of red going to afford more bills now that mom has passed away? The house is gone already. They can either split the sale of the house now or have sister lose the whole thing later.”
A Final Comment
Lastly, this person posted, “Family deaths can bring out the worst in people. And for what? Some money and things? Seems pretty sad all around.”
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