My mother passed away 6 months ago and put both my sister and myself as executor to her estate. Being that I live in another state I relinquished my executor role and let her and her husband be sole executor. Finally after 8 months of waiting for our inheritance we were given most of the money and that worked out well, but the problem is that there was one investment that they told me I was sharing 50/50 benificiary with them. They sent me the bank paper that I needed to sign to release the funds and they put my sister and my joint account on that document. I sensed they were hiding something and I called the bank only to find out I am the benificiary 100 percent. I called them on it and since then they have tried every tactic to justify it including telling me they have rights to it, they deserve it. My sister has gone from being angry screaming I dont trust them to the next day crying saying she has been carrying the load for years in the family. Then now they are saying they need to keep that money to pay taxes next year on the money we received. I mostly hate the manipulation and deceit they are displaying. Now my husband and I are fighting because my sister has bullied me into agreeing about the holding onto that tax money. My husband wants me to tell them where to go and to not give the a cent. Up until now I had a very close relationship with my sister and brother in law.. I feel my sister has ruined our family for a very long time. I dont think I can every feel comfortable again around them because of how manipulative they have been. My sister did do a lot for my mother as I moved away 18 years ago from them but my mother was independent and maintained her own home. She took care of me when I was ill for 8 months in her home and didnt charge me a cent. I can't forget that she was so good to me but that doesn't justify their behavior. I am tired of being a doormat but somehow I let myself be talked into signing that paper with our joint account and I sent it to them.
In the meantime, why don't you try to focus more on support and compassion for your mother in her last days/weeks/months? That's more important than being focused on what you're going to inherit.
And who knows? Perhaps your mother is aware of your attitude toward "getting your share" and didn't even leave you anything in her Will. You're not entitled to anything if she doesn't want you to get anything.
I am so sick of talking about this with my friends I'm thinking of hiring a talk therapist just so I can vent on them and not my friends.....after my Mothers death (dad already had passed ) .
As soon as dad died I suggested my mom think about getting her will together. And I thought she had. I put no input other than "make sure you appreciate your choices and can live life with them and then never worry about it again". I told her nothing else about what I wanted in the will. I forgot about it. Then the truth hit me like a wall....my sibling (and my co executor ) had her change the original will once to their favor. And it was already in their favor. And I still said nothing.
I had no intention of making my mother redo a will because my brother wanted an extra item or more money. My mom at that point was still alive and I just wanted her to be able to live and not worry about this stuff.
Turns out that was not a great idea. This sneaky sibling has gone behind my back as the co executor and has teamed up with another sibling to take all they could out of the house to the point where there is nothing to have any type of sale with.
Then I found out more wills were written up and more changes. More than 5 times they had the changes all made up to their advantage.
Disgusting, far from honest.
And here is the real sad part. I had legal access to all the money, deed to the house and was legally able to take all the money and sell the house. Yet I didn't. I made sure they had money and got some. I did not sell the house. But unlike my siblings I did not abuse my mother and force her to think about her will more than once. It's such an eye opening disgusting reality.
One sibling is a physician, and they did nothing to help my mother get out of the hospital. The other one with the spouse just grabbed all the stuff from the house that has any value. Disgusting people can come from any family. The fact that I'm a Co executor with anyone surprised me. I think it was done to be fair.....
PAY ATTENTION TO THOSE OF YOU SOON WRITING WILLS. being fair does not always mean equal responsibility. And if one sibling is doing better than another your parents probably take that into account too.
But when they make two of you co executor after one of you already pushed her into making them the only executor......they are acknowledging the lack of trust they have in the pushy, elderly abusing apparent bully who caused her to just keep re-writing wills and become more confused adding to her dementia.
The sad thing is as I mentioned on sibling in a physician and the other sibling is married to someone in healthcare. All of them wanted her dead years ago. The physician because she was just not worthy their time. AND the thief? They had wanted her dead for years. At least that's what she told me as did some of her friends several times. How's that? She feels they want her dead for years and yet still makes them co executor. Look out for snakes, bank account high jacks ownership of property, brokerage , transfers on death, these are all ways your siblings can try to screw with your inheritance. Google it. No doubt you will read of many similar experiences. Good luck to you all. We need it. Btw I know that when this is all over sadly so are the relationships with my entire remaining family.
Peace to you all .
There is a further $ 10,100 in unexplained withdrawls.
After mums death my sister retained mums ashes to all others exclusion, she took in excess of $5,000 in chattels from estate. My brother and I have been left stripped of all personal estate items, not one family photo our sister has taken everything. Now she wants to buy the estate home and leave my brother homeless.
I have spent $5,000 on lawyers to be told I cant prove she took items. If it goes to court all the estate will be consumed by legal fees.
How does the rule of law apply here?
How can I forgive this wrong doing for me to live the rest of my life?
How can my mother be put to rest with her deceased son and husband?
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My mom died 3 years ago and my sister kept all mom's savings because she had mom's bank account with her name on it as well instead of my dad. She put mom in a nursing home without telling me and dad. I live in europe and me and dad found out 3 months later that mom was in a nursing home. My sister told dad mom was at her house for a while , go figure.
My dad passed away 1 year ago , I had come home for 2 months to help take care of dad. My sister controlled me day and night, she would drive a 2 1/2 hour drive just to see what I was doing. I was all day in hospital with dad, only came home to sleep and shower. Doctors told us that dad could not go home anymore but had to be put in a nursing facility because he needed daily medical care. The hospital helped very much because they put my dad on top of the list because me and my sister lived too far away from dad. They found a place for dad in his hometown which was very good because he had siblings, friends of his there as well. The day come for the transfer and my sister says no and that she is taking dad to his home. The social worker said no you cannot take your dad to his home, he cannot live alone. My sister brough a caregiver with her but the hospital said no so she signed dad out and did what she wanted . First she took dad to a lawyer and got another will made up, then she told me she didn't need me around anymore so she took the car away from us. I never argued with her about anything because I had promissed mom and dad that us sisters would never argue . Mom and dad Always said that whatever they had we where to split 50/50 without arguing. The social worker called me in to talk and asked me what was going on with my sister because she wouldn't answer to social worker's calls or emails. I told the social worker that it seems like my sister is angry with everyone and doesn't consult me on what to do, she just does what she wants with my dad's life. In the end of it all my sister won, she took dad home with a caregiver who could not speak dad's Language. Dad kept telling me to please help him because he didn't want the caregiver and he was mad at my sister because he said she has Always been a trouble maker. I tried going to dad's lawyer, but he even told me that if she signed dad out of the hospital she was responsible for dad. My 2 and a half month stay came to an end and I had to leave dad's house because the lawyer said if something happened while I was there I could be held responsible. At this point I was feeling very sick and tired. When I got back home in europe I went to my doctor and found out I had very high blood sugar which I have never had any problems with. Doctor said it was all do to the stress I had been through, I also lost most of my hair all due to stress. I was Always in contact with mom and dad , I would call them once a week and they would call me as well. We had a very good relationship me mom and dad and my younger sister who had passed away years before. My dad died after 3 months, he was taken to the hospital after one month that the caregiver was there because he couldn't do what dad needed. I haven't talked to my sister since. She is the executor trustee to dads' will. God only knows how that will end. Mom and dad made us promise and I did respect all of their wishes. My sister has Always accused me of never having cared for mom and dad. I live in europe where I met my husband and live happily with my family. If I lived closer I would have cared for them. She can't say she has either because she didn't. I know my story sounds all so weird but it just feels good to get it all out and to see that I am not the only one who has these problems with siblings. Thank you all for listening.
Rainmom, I completely agree with you regarding inheritance, IF, that is indeed the parents wishes, to the letter, that is our responsibility, but in my husband's case, his two siblings had contentious relationships with their parents that have nothing to do with him. They have stolen and chiseled away money from their parents their whole lives, lots and lots of money, meanwhile my husband and I enjoyed our relationships with his folks, always lived only miles from them, encouraged our kids to build relationships with them as well and for that, we are the ones who were blessed,having them in our lives, and in the 31 years I've been apart of this family, I've never once seen where the other two did anything other than make his parents lives difficult, and this now reflects in the way in which my remaining in law has planned to distribute his remaining assets. I believe that every family is different in their dynamics and this shows in the way one feels about things like this. I pray that our four kids feel that it is our every intention to be fair and equal, when that time comes. I hope that we have money left to give them, but if we don't, then I know that we gave them the most important thing of all, and that is our time, Love and devotion.
The caregiver should make real legal and financial arrangements along the way when caregiving, to provide for a future for themselves.
I have been thinking about this, the will. It will cost more to execute a will and bury me than any proceeds of any estate will provide. I give up. The efforts continually required to keep what income I have instead of it being required to support my special needs husband have all been too much for me, today.
I went. While there, I found a check (forged) on one of my Dad's accounts. I ordered my sister to put the checks away where her dirtbag husband couldn't get to them.
She didn't.
I, also, took my dad with me. He stayed at my house until he died.
I, also, took care of my mother-in-law with Alzheimer's. My husband was the Executor of her will. We didn't want to be seen as taking advantage of Mom, so we put the monies in the hands of my husband's sister, whom we trusted.
But, basically, people can't be trusted with money. We cared for Mom and she and her husband got a mini-mansion. She wouldn't even give us enough to get a little larger house (We had seven children) so Mom could have her own room. She said, no, we were asking for too much.
Mom ended up dying in our front room because we had no place for her once she advanced to the hospice stage. (BLESS HOSPICE!!!)
Don't trust anyone when it comes to parents and their money. But do your best for your parent or in-law while you are able. It's a blessing.
Montana, I take issue and disagree with your last statement as well. I don't see any reason why someone who makes the sacrifices necessary to care for a parent shouldn't expect some consideration. Maybe some people see it as an opportunity to get more from any inheritance, but certainly not all people do.
More likely it's a way to shorten one's life because of the stress involved.
There are any number of posts here by caregivers who've made significant financial, personal and career sacrifices but don't expect anything more from an inheritance.
I personally think some siblings just have more sense of responsibility than others.
That said a neighbour of ours died about 2 years ago and there was a very complicated probate and execution of the will. The man had called the lawyers in to draft a new will and they had done so but he died before he could sign it - so worthless. His new will would have left an additioal 20k to the daughter who looked after him for 15 years and he was bedridden for 10 of those years. The other siblings never visited phoned or sent cards but by george they soon found the house when he died and they were all over it like a rash. They wanted to take things that belonged to the daughter because she couldn't prove she had bought them some 10 years previously.
The solicitor told them of the new will - of course they didn't give a hoot about it. They forced the sale of the house via auction - which gives the lowest price over here usually - and could because she wasn't 60 (at which point in the UK you acquire some rights - not a lot but some). She was 58 single, no friends, no children - her husband couldn't tolerate the situation of care and a found a new model some 8 years previously! She had no home and very little to support herself with, simply because she gave up her life to devote to a father she adored. She became very depressed and committed suicide - her final act was to leave a will leaving all her money to her siblings stating that she did so because they clearly cared more about the money than her and that she would rather be with the father she loved.
So while I say yes Montana you don't do it for the inheritance - it its not always greed and some people are not financially stable enough post the death of their loved one to tolerate one more blow to their already diminished lives. Showing an utter lack of acknowledgement for her role as caregiver was the final blow for her.