RMO Case Spotlight

Background 

Our client came to us frustrated after learning that his father’s trust, which primarily held the family residence, no longer contained the home at the time of his father’s death. The decedent had removed the property from the trust for refinancing purposes shortly before passing. Previous counsel had advised our client that the only option was to go through probate, which is often time-consuming and costly. Seeking a better, more cost-effective solution, our client came to RMO.

Solution

The RMO team quickly identified an alternative to the lengthy probate process by filing a Heggstad petition. This petition asks the court to confirm that the residence, despite being removed from the trust prior to death, was still intended to be part of the trust at the time of the decedent’s passing. This would allow us to bypass probate entirely.

While awaiting the hearing for the petition, we learned that the property was facing imminent foreclosure, with a sale date set within a matter of days. The stakes were high. If the petition wasn’t granted in time, the home could be lost to foreclosure, and the beneficiaries would receive nothing from their father’s estate.

Results

The judge granted our Heggstad petition, confirming that the home was an asset of the trust. This decision postponed the foreclosure sale for 45 days, providing the necessary time to attend to home.

With the court order in hand, the RMO team assisted our client in quickly moving forward with plans to list the home, make strategic improvements, and secure a signed purchase offer. The home is now under contract, and the proceeds from the sale will be distributed to the trust beneficiaries, fulfilling the decedent’s estate planning intentions.

Additionally, by pursuing the Heggstad petition, our client was able to make improvements on the property to increase its sale value, an advantage over the traditional probate sale, where properties are typically sold “as is” without the opportunity for repairs or upgrades.