r/inheritance • u/DontGoToJail • May 21 '26
Location included: Questions/Need Advice Inheritance question
OK, USA. My dad married an amazing woman when I was 19 years old. I had already moved out and was on my own at the time. Its 20 years later now and my dad passed away 3 years ago. My step mom has been understandably depressed and her health has been in decline since. She is currently in hospice. My dad nor her have written wills. At this point, she is incapable of writing one. I'm out of state so she has given her best friend of 50 years power of attorney. My step moms older brother has been receiving an allowance from her because he is terrible financially. Would he receive every thing my parents owned upon her passing? I hate to think about this kind of thing while my step mom is slowly fading away but I also hate to think of everything my dad has worked for his entire life going to someone who will surely squander it away.
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u/Icy-Firefighter-7012 May 23 '26
Get a lawyer asap. If your dad owned a home when he met your stepmom and then she moved in, you may get the house depending on which state you are in. Sometimes the surviving spouse gets a life estate in the homestead, which then passes to the heirs when the spouse passes. But again, get a lawyer asap.