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<p class="MsoNormal">I have a client whose father passed away in 2010.  His stepmother was provided a life estate in the Will.  She was placed in a nursing home in 2012 and the home is vacant and becoming dilapidated.  Contact with her son gets nowhere – promises
 mom is going to pay RE taxes…  Real estate taxes have not been paid since 2012 when she moved out.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">My research tells me that the life estate tenant is responsible for taxes, maintenance, insurance and costs related to the property.  WA Probate Deskbook & WA Probate Procedure and Tax Manual don’t address this situation.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">If the house is rented, the life estate owner gets the rents.  But what if the life estate owner leaves to never return and doesn’t maintain the property or the taxes?<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="color:red">Question:  What can my 3 sons do as they are to inherit the property when stepmother dies and don’t want to see the home in such disrepair and foreclosed for taxes which are now more than $11,000?<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><i><span style="font-size:14.0pt;font-family:"Arial Rounded MT Bold",serif;color:#1F497D">Dalynne Singleton<o:p></o:p></span></i></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:14.0pt;font-family:"Calibri",sans-serif;color:#1F497D"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="font-size:14.0pt;font-family:"Calibri",sans-serif;color:#1F497D">Gourley Law Group<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="font-size:14.0pt;font-family:"Calibri",sans-serif;color:#1F497D">Snohomish Escrow<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="font-size:14.0pt;font-family:"Calibri",sans-serif;color:#1F497D">The Exchange Connection<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family:"Arial Rounded MT Bold",serif;color:#1F497D">1002 10<sup>th</sup> Street / PO Box 1091<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family:"Arial Rounded MT Bold",serif;color:#1F497D">Snohomish, WA 98291<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family:"Arial Rounded MT Bold",serif;color:#1F497D"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family:"Arial Rounded MT Bold",serif;color:#1F497D">360.568.5065<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family:"Arial Rounded MT Bold",serif;color:#1F497D">360.329.4079<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family:"Arial Rounded MT Bold",serif;color:#1F497D">360.568.8092  fax<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><u><span style="font-family:"Arial Rounded MT Bold",serif;color:#0563C1"><a href="mailto:dalynne@glgmail.com"><span style="color:#0563C1">dalynne@glgmail.com</span></a></span></u><span style="font-family:"Arial Rounded MT Bold",serif;color:#1F497D"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background:white"><b><i><span style="font-size:14.0pt;font-family:"Calibri",sans-serif;color:black"><o:p> </o:p></span></i></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><i><span style="font-family:"Californian",serif;color:black">LICENSED IN WASHINGTON AND OREGON</span></i><span style="font-family:"Californian",serif;color:black"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman",serif;color:black">IMPORTANT/CONFIDENTIAL: This e-mail message (and any attachments accompanying it) may contain confidential information, including information protected by attorney-client
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 If you are not the intended recipient, or if this message has been addressed to you in error, do not read, disclose, reproduce, distribute, disseminate or otherwise use this transmission, rather, please promptly notify the sender by reply e-mail, and then
 destroy all copies of the message and its attachments, if any.</span><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman",serif;color:black"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
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</span></b><a href="http://www.superlawyers.com/redir?r=http://www.superlawyers.com/washington/lawyer/Gary-Manca/ca059d21-1b6e-4fca-b396-80c253f82402.html&c=email_Small_badge&i=ca059d21-1b6e-4fca-b396-80c253f82402" title=""Visit the official website of Super Lawyers" "><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman",serif;color:blue;border:none windowtext 1.0pt;padding:0in;text-decoration:none"><img border="0" width="100" height="32" id="Picture_x0020_2" src="cid:image003.png@01D1D141.E27A7290" alt="Rated by Super Lawyers"></span></a><span style="font-size:11.0pt;font-family:"Calibri",sans-serif;color:#1F497D">     </span><span style="font-size:18.0pt;font-family:"Calibri",sans-serif;color:black"><img border="0" width="168" height="84" id="Picture_x0020_3" src="cid:image004.jpg@01D1D141.E27A7290" alt="cid:X.MA1.1404868472@aol.com"></span><span style="font-size:11.0pt;font-family:"Calibri",sans-serif;color:#1F497D"><img border="0" width="176" height="123" id="Picture_x0020_4" src="cid:image005.png@01D1D141.E27A7290" alt="cid:image001.png@01D0DB60.FF4B9070"></span><span style="font-family:"Helvetica",sans-serif;color:black"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
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