Mom left the house to my brother. Not good choice. He is on SS I and food stamps.He Will have $ 700 in his bank account when the bill is due. Payed in half. Almost $2000. Is due in September. The trust can't pay the bill I don't think. It's a housing expence. What am I supposed to do. He doesn't have intellectual disabilities. Really, he should be responsible for himself. He won't even think of moving.
It sounds as though your brother needs for someone to be in charge of his life...and it shouldn't be you. Agreed with paying the lawyer (out of the assets of the trust) to manage it, and to be the one to explain the facts on the ground to your brother.
Barbara, your brother is mentally ill. This is neither his fault nor yours, but it IS a factor in this mess. You (along with any other human being) will have a limited ability to change your brother's mind about things, since he doesn't see reality the way most people do.
For the sake of your mental health, you need to get someone else, preferably a lawyer, to be in charge of your brother's trust.
When more money is put in the trust, can the tax be paid out of the trust then? Or is this problem going to come up every year?
Can the lawyer simply manage this for you, for an additional fee, of course?
last few years of her life. And she was constantly worried about my brother. Making herself sick. So I started telling her I would help brother. To keep her from a nervice breakdown. The trust can pay insurance and house maintenance.
I don't think this is your problem. Let a lawyer take over the trust management duties. If there is not enough money in the trust to cover taxes and insurance and maintenance, and your brother's disability income is not enough to cover those expenses, then your mother simply did not succeed in her intention to take care of him, did she? This is Not Your Fault. Given the nature of your relationship with your brother I think that you are justified in stepping out of the management role.
How did it happen Mother did not provide for him as she intended? What happened with the rest of the estate? Maybe that will provide some clues.
I think you're just going to have to decide to step back and let your brother develop some responsibility or make some accommodations.
I DEFINITELY would not dig into your own finances to pay the taxes. Every time you accommodate him, you reinforce the fact that he knows he can get you to bail him out.
1. Your mother created a SNT for your brother.
2. Presumably it was funded? How? I'm assuming there are assets there to provide for his continuing care as well as domicile after her death? Can't these assets be used for the property taxes?
You wrote that your attorney stated your brother has to pay the taxes. Is this a provision in the SNT? If not, on what is his opinion based?
3. Your mother willed the house to him; now he's responsible for upkeep and maintenance. But any income he has is insufficient to pay the taxes. Can he pay ANY portion of them?
4. Why can't the assets in the SNT be used to pay the property taxes?
5. I'm not sure what a "tax credit" means in your state, and I don't know the age of your brother. Michigan statutes provide that seniors or people with less than a stated income can apply to DEFER tax payment until February of the following year.
6. Check your state's statutes, or ask your lawyer is a similar deferral option exists for someone with special needs. If so, there's your answer until February, 2017.
7. If there is no deferral, there's a way to game the system, which I wouldn't suggest except that your posts indicate you're overwhelmed with the tasks of managing your mother's estate and dealing with your brother who doesn't seem to be very cooperative.
That solution is one I realized some people in my area were using. They pay the winter taxes, or pay a portion of the summer taxes, which apparently under Michigan statutes prevents the entire taxes from being unpaid and subject to foreclosure (after 3 years of being unpaid here in Michigan).
One family owed several thousand dollars but the county couldn't foreclose for delinquent taxes because only some of the taxes were delinquent.
I don't know how large this house is, but I agree that consideration should be encouraged for him to find a smaller and more manageable place, despite the fact that he won't move.
This is not a criticism, but as long as he's accommodated in his obstinacy, he's going to continue to expect your to accommodate him. I honestly don't know if I could be firm if this were my brother, so I can imagine that it's a difficult situation for you.
But from what you've written about the way he treated your mother, it would be hard to justify accommodating and stepping in to rescue him financially. And you're not obligated to make the financial or other arrangements your mother made for him.
You're well within your rights to tell him he has to find a solution for tax payment if he wants to stay there.
Angel
I do wonder what he'll do when it comes time for painting, roofing, and other maintenance. Keeping a house up is expensive.
has to pay the property taxes. That he should apply for tax credit. But what is he supposed to do for this year? This is very stressful for me. I really want to tell my brother. Your bill your problem. But I feel a little responcible for him. Even though he was verbally abusive to mom. And controled her life. And I have no relationship with him. Except for being executor for mom will and running brothers trust. Because mom said she had no one else to do it.
Angel