Will my credit be effected if I am heir to a home in foreclosure?
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Will my credit be effected if I am heir to a home in foreclosure?
My father died several years ago without a Will. I let his wife decide what to do with their home. I just got a letter saying the home is now in foreclosure and I am listed as an heir.
Asked on March 25, 2009 under Estate Planning, Florida
Answers:
FreeAdvice Contributing Attorney / FreeAdvice Contributing Attorney
Answered 15 years ago | Contributor
This is really less of a Wills, Trusts and Probate question than a Credit Bureau processes question, but let's see if we can help anyway.
If the title to your late father's home is now registered in your name (as it would be if the probate process has been completed or you were a joint tenant on the property with your father -- in which case you'd have inherited it as a matter of law on his death), or if the loan he'd taken out was issued to you, or if you were a co-signer / guarantor on that loan, as the credit bureaus track all foreclosures, your name likely would be reported to the credit bureaus.
If and when the credit bureaus realize YOU are the same person as the one who owns title to the property involved in the foreclosure, that would significantly ding your credit rating.
You may be able to quitclaim the property to your step-mother, but that's something we'd suggest you should speak about with a lawyer in the state where the property is located.
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