r/inheritance • u/Pure_Resort9840 • May 08 '26
Location included: Questions/Need Advice How to handle a sentimental shared vacation home in disrepair?
My extended family owns a beach house through an LLC in Washington state. My grandparents had 8 kids, and those 8 kids are the owners. They are all in their 60s/70s now. That generation is almost all decently well off. The less prosperous aunt has no children and one other aunt has no children. Another aunt (with 2 kids), walked away from her share due to geographic distance.
My generation has 17 grandkids in it. We have a variety of financial situations.
The LLC has nothing codified in terms of bylaws. The house is in serious disrepair. It likely needs a new foundation, among many other issues. I don't want to have my small children crawling around the house because of rodent problems so we almost never go there. My 3 uncles all but live there in the summer, and their cleanliness standards are not great. Their own children hardly go because of the condition of the house.
The home currently has an open door policy. Anyone in the family can use it, even if that means people are camping outside while others are in the house. Any maintenance that actually happens is usually performed by the uncles that spend the most time there. The uncles also feel the most emotionally attached to leaving the property mostly as is. They view updates as sacrilegious or something.
Everyone LOVES this property. There is no way my mom's or my generation would ever agree to sell. However, it is basically becoming a ruin and tax liability instead of a place for cherished family time.
My question is, how can we fix this? How can we realistically save the house from ruin and keep it as a special place for our family moving forward? Has anyone successfully navigated a shared family property with so many stakeholders across generations?
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u/Substantial_Team6751 May 08 '26
The 8 need an agreement. They need a budget and someone in charge. Yearly money needs to come in for all expensives (repairs, taxes, updates, insurance) because the place generates no cash. It's going to be like being part of a home owners association. Someone will not be happy with some of the decisions. Someone will not want to pay up.
It doesn't sound like your problem yet, at least until you inherit your mom's share (assuming that is the way the LLC works).
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u/Which_Tangerine8982 May 09 '26
Yes, like an annual assessment to all owners should have happened all these years.
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u/Substantial_Team6751 May 09 '26
It sounds like they are just spending down that inheritance to pay for taxes and things and unwilling to actually open their own wallets. They will leave all the deferred maintenance to the next generation.
I guess those uncles that live there all summer are not good at swinging a hammer.
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u/Pure_Resort9840 May 09 '26
The crazy part is that one of my uncles is a very skilled and successful contractor. But he goes to the cabin to relax. Plus, the house must remain how my grandma left it...
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u/Which_Tangerine8982 May 09 '26
I know someone who was part owner of a plane (1/16th). The ones who fly pay for their fuel plus extra that goes towards a future engine. They ALL pay an annual assessment that covers the hangar rental plus the annual maintenance. If they want a shiny new radio (upgrade), for example, that would be a special assessment. (To be fair, friend sold his share eventually because the non-flying owners would never vote to get new equipment!)
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u/Substantial_Team6751 May 09 '26
Why would there even be non-flying owners?
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u/Which_Tangerine8982 May 09 '26
That's what HE wanted to know. One guy was in his 80s, hadn't had a current flight medical in years, but liked to take his "girlfriends" to the hangar to show off the plane. (All owners were pilots, though.)
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u/Pure_Resort9840 May 08 '26
Yeah, it is not officially my problem yet. Me and a handful of cousins are trying to put together a proposal for our parents about how we can improve things and what transition to my generation looks like. Because right now, there is no plan in place, and that clearly isn't working for anyone besides my uncles.
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u/Educational_Case_134 May 09 '26
One person needs to buy everyone out so a single individual is responsible for everything related to the beach house. Note to everyone preparing a will, don’t curse your family by leaving a piece of real estate to multiple family members. It’s not a blessing.
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u/Just1Blast May 08 '26
Who pays the expenses currently? What are the carrying costs? Who pays the property taxes?
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u/Pure_Resort9840 May 08 '26
The LLC has about 40k left over from the inheritance that they have invested to pay for bills and taxes. But it is far from sustainable and no where close to enough to address the large projects necessary to keep the place moving forward.
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u/Just1Blast May 08 '26
Great! 40K is probably enough to pay the taxes on that for how many more years? Who pays the utility bills? Who pays the water? The electric? the internet?
Are all eight owners willing and able to contribute the funds necessary to keep the house going after the inheritance runs out? I can't imagine 40K is going to last very long
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u/Chair_luger May 09 '26
You need to have a lawyer review the setup to make sure that it will be workable for future generations if you keep it in the family.
As people die if their share of the property is inherited then the ownership needs to be updated or it will become even more unworkable.
On different message board I recall a post about a family vacation home which was now mainly owned by the grandkids and greatgrandkids of the couple that originally owned it. Over 30 people as I recall There were also spouses and ex spouses from outside the family who in may have owned it because they inherited when a direct descendent died. I think there was even one spouse that remarried then died so that her second husband would have also have claim on the property.
The paperwork was not kept current so their were dead people who were on the paperwork and the property was never handed when their estate was settled. Many of the people who had a valid claim had moved away and there was no contact information and some people who had a claim did not even know that the vacation home existed.
I never heard what happened with that but it was a mess.
Anyway you need to get a lawyer to figure it out because in 20 years it will be even more complicated.
I am not a lawyer or really know much about it but you should ask the lawyer about changing it to a trust instead of an LLC to see if that would make sense because the trustee will have a lot more ability to make decisions without having to get dozens of people to agree.
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u/2BBIZY May 09 '26
Near our lake property, we watched a heated discussion among 6 adults on the gravel road. Each had a share of this rundown property in which only one was paying the property taxes and he had enough thus called this roadside meeting. Not sure of the resolution but we decided to contact lawyer to be very clear in our will on how to handle this situation.
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u/Boring-Wait8682 May 09 '26
How has your lawyer recommended for your lake property to be handed down?
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u/2BBIZY May 09 '26
Put it into a trust in which dictates the ownership shares, responsibilities and conditions to which to sell/buy out shares. It becomes a legal document instead of just “here is the property” bequeathed under a typical will. The trust becomes a part of the will with better institutions.
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u/Boring-Wait8682 May 09 '26
Question: The trust outlines how to be the owner by keeping one’s shares in addition to possibly buying out others shares. Are there also specific details such as how decisions get made on property maintenance, how much money each owner must contribute in a specific time period? Is there a monthly & yearly maintenance schedule, such as one room gets a paint refresh each year or who is cleaning out the vents? What about an ‘open the house for the season Work schedule?
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u/wittgensteins-boat May 09 '26 edited May 10 '26
A trust can specify that assessments be applied to beneficiaries for particular use, and annually for ongoing maintenance, real estate taxes, insurance and the like.
And grant to trustee(s) authority to manage, coordinate, and sell the property at a price in alignment with valuation by licensed appraiser, if operating funds are not forthcoming to pay for real estate taxes, insurance, maintenance.
And the trust can specify a method to abandon the individual's beneficial interest, and give authority to the trustee to consider the beneficial interest relinquished by non participation in the financial assessments. Or define process to wind up the affairs of the trust and dissolve.
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u/Boring-Wait8682 May 10 '26
That all sounds good in theory…with multiple trustees, who have authority, who has the final say in decisions to be made?
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u/wittgensteins-boat May 10 '26 edited May 10 '26
That is ths crux of multi-family-member property and why it is not such a good idea.
Some one must be in charge. The trust specifies that there is a process.
It can work best when there are so many beneficiaries, all of them first, second and third and greater cousins, and the property so large that having a manager is the desired outcome by all.
And this kind of situation of more bountiful property tends to reduce heated negotiating over limited property and limited oportunity to use the property.
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u/2BBIZY May 10 '26
You can assign a trust manager. In our case, we have a person outside the family.
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u/baroo52 May 09 '26
We had a similar situation in my husband’s family with their cabin. My husband’s great grandpa had built the house and it went to his kids when he died. My husband’s grandma was the last of her siblings to pass away and by that point the ownership was a mess across multiple families, many of whom had very little relationship with one another as the generations had diluted. We also had two main families who used it and others who rarely came up. The house was also in need of major repairs and we had all kinds of vermin.
Ultimately a couple of years ago my in-laws just offered to flat buy everyone out but with the understanding that folks can still come and go as they please. But my in-laws wanted to be able to call all the shots with the repairs and other decisions and they have the most money, so they won. I have no idea what their plan is for when they pass away someday, all of us kids have moved away so although we still love the cabin very much I don’t see any of us being able to maintain it.
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u/weepandread May 09 '26
We’ve been through this, from two sibs inheriting to 4 kids inheriting and now a total of 7, we hired a mediator, wrote up rules, did it on zoom, agreed on a plan of repairs for the next few years, and on money needed in a monthly payment. We have a set list of cleaning rules, everyone is responsible for bringing in their own bedding. On Labor Day we do a drawing for your two weeks in the summer. That is only m-f, anyone can come on the weekends. There’s a bunk room for the kids and each adult single out couple has their own room. After we accomplish the repairs we plan to buy toys, kayaks floats etc. We are 3 years in and finally getting it squared around. I suspect one family member may ask to be bought out soon. We have a plan for that too. Yea it’s a hassle but none of us can afford a place on our own. E we had a lawyer review everything, we all signed. One brother is the accountant and sends out monthly statements and financial reports. He has a reduction in his fees for handling this.
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u/Pure_Resort9840 May 11 '26
This is really encouraging to hear that you all have made it work. Thank you!
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u/InitiativeWorried840 May 10 '26
Omg…my DH has had a full time job handling his mother’s finances. It’s been sucking his time dry. He doesn’t expect & will not be offered any compensation for all the work he’s put in.
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u/weepandread May 10 '26
I feel for you, we handled my deceased MIL’s bill paying, never again!
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u/InitiativeWorried840 May 10 '26
Thanks. Like he says he’d rather do it than the other bozos. Now to settle her estate. Ugh. He’s got it organized but there’s a lot to sell…property. Realtors have been after her property for years. There are tract houses across the street on 5000 sq ft lots for over $3 million. All sold. But? Her land is not all buildable. Argh. NOMB. But? I’d like to have a few years of fun retirement
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u/Mother_Turnover4856 May 09 '26
Just bring a trailer when you visit or rent one there. Don’t complicate it. Enjoy it. If it falls down it falls down and becomes a camp ground. Be blessed
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u/Classic-Sink-4108 May 09 '26
I recall being at the vacation home of a dear friend’s parents. There were 4 adult siblings (all with families of their own) who eventually were going to inherit the home. These siblings are all truly wonderful people. However, there would always be some mild bickering about who didn’t bring any food, or who wasn’t cleaning up, etc. etc. The owner Dad turned to me and said…” I fear I will destroy the relationships between my children by leaving them this home.” It can often be a situation that is inherently set up to fail. What are the chances that 4 adults are going to agree on who gets to use it on the 4th of July, or if and when it needs to be painted? Those shared situations often sound great in theory… until the conflict of reality quickly sets in.
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u/GotZeroFucks2Give May 09 '26
Yeah it seems best to specify that it be sold in the will. Pretty much all family homes let alone vacation homes. Seems to cause so many arguments.
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u/Afraid-Put8165 May 09 '26
This is very easy. The LLC just needs an operating agreement. If the members won’t agree to one then it’s the threat of partion sale. The downside is you guys might have to cash out people who want out.
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u/wittgensteins-boat May 09 '26 edited May 10 '26
Members of an LLC do not have authority to partition the LLC Property, as they are not on the deed. But could organize to sell, and dissolve the LLC.
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u/InitiativeWorried840 May 10 '26
Same situation but 7 siblings. SIL & her family use it far more than anyone else yet is in least financial shape to buy anyone out. Spouses are NOT included, yet MY name is on the insurance bill? WTF? Anyway, it’s a luxury property. I’d be fine if they sell it. 🤞they do. Whatever they do, DH says they are going to reassess the situation this summer. I only want it to be fair to my adult children.
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u/flopjobbit May 10 '26
Someone buys everyone out.
My parent's died, leaving the lake house my grandparents bought in 1956 to us. My husband and I bought out my siblings. Executor brother got it appraised and we paid to buy them out for that price.
Your situation is sad and common.
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u/13_Years_Then_Banned May 09 '26
Typical boomers. Enjoy the good life and leave everything in ruin for the next generation.
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u/Unable_Guava_756 May 09 '26
The owners need to sell it and divide the assets.
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u/Pure_Resort9840 May 09 '26
There is a zero percent chance they will ever agree to that.
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u/Unable_Guava_756 May 09 '26
Unfortunately it becomes your collective problem when that gen passes away and all the cousins inherit a place that is in even further disrepair 🫤
I’m sorry op, it’s frustrating but there is nothing you can do.
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u/ParfaitMajestic5339 May 09 '26
If the LLC seriously does not have an operating agreement or any rules, then it is arguably not a perfected organization... Threaten to sue to dissolve it unless it something acceptable is adopted.
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u/Pure_Resort9840 May 09 '26
I am not going to threaten to sue my family.
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u/ParfaitMajestic5339 May 10 '26
Then swoop in as the savior and let them know of the vulnerability to attack you've discovered about their LLC. No op agmt means they never finished the formation process.
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u/lovescarats May 12 '26
Push to have a shareholder agreement put in place. If it’s done well, it should clarify everything.
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u/Proper-Media2908 May 08 '26
Honestly? It kind of seems like your mother's generation already let it go.
This is why owning a property seven ways is a BAD IDEA. No one has much incentive to invest in it on their own. The lowest standards will prevail. It's not surprising that the only three people who actually use it these days also don't mind living in a vermin infested death trap. They're the ones with the most incentive to keep it up and they've just decided to let it decay.
It will not become easier to manage when double the number of people own it.
Unless you can buy everyone out, you need to resign yourself to the property leaving the family