Elderly woman needs attorney to research home’s deed, friend to help

Q: My friend is 85 years old. She has pains in her heart a lot.

She has lived with her son since her husband died and she signed the house over to her son, without having to leave and being able to live there 'till she dies.

Now he's planning to get married to a woman who has two children. She says she's going to move out because his girlfriend doesn't get along with her.

She says when she leaves she can only take her clothes and personal effects, no bed, nothing else. Is it true? It's not fair for her not to have other things.

Please write and tell me soon. She is so agitated and hurt. She has till the end of the year 'till she has to move. She's a wonderful lady. -- P.G.

A: Your friend may have more than the right to live in her house. If she has what is legally known as life tenancy, she is still the owner for her lifetime.

I can't tell how the deed she signed is written, but she -- or you -- must get to a lawyer right away to find out what it says and what that means. Investigate also whether she ever signed anything giving away her personal property.

If it turns out she is a life tenant, she could even leave and rent the place out to anyone she wanted.

If she doesn't have much money, a phone call to her County Bar Association can tell you where she can get legal help at little or no cost.

Reassure her that this doesn't mean she must go to court and sue her son.

It's just a matter of finding out what she's entitled to and where she stands.

Let me know what happens; I'm interested.

Could they foreclose?

Q: If you pay your mortgage every month on the 15th during the grace period (even though technically considered late after the first) can your mortgage company foreclose? -- Via e-mail

A: They won't have any grounds to foreclose if they receive the money by the 15th. That's what a grace period means. (You'll hurt your credit record, of course, if you pay late every month.)

Simply mailing your checks on the 15th, though, wouldn't work.

The payments would get there after the grace period had expired. Postmarks wouldn't help.

Late charges would pile up, your loan would be in default, and you'd be in danger of foreclosure.

VA loan requirements

Q: I am a veteran and I have a Veterans Affairs guarantee for a mortgage.

My credit is pretty bad, but my landlord is willing to sell me this house on a lease-option.

Could the VA credit be transferred to use for my lease-option to my landlord? Could that be with no down payment? -- Via e-mail

A: The VA will guarantee enough of your mortgage that it would be safe to lend to you with nothing down.

Problem is, they'll do that only with regular lending institutions, not with your landlord. And it's intended for outright sales, not lease-options. But with a lease-option, you'd be buying on a sort of layaway plan anyhow and your landlord might not require a down payment.

Lending institutions will consider you for a regular VA mortgage with as little as the past 12 months of good credit. Perhaps if you clean up your record, you might qualify to buy outright in the usual way.

Complaining about Realtor

A: Good morning: Would you please inform me how Realtors are licensed, and how one can go about filing a complaint regarding an individual Realtor?

This individual actually owns the real estate company involved, so registering a complaint there didn't help at all. Thank you. -- L.L.

A: You're right in thinking that the first person to contact is the principal broker who is legally responsible for all the activity in that office. As that won't work in this case, your next step is the local Association of Realtors, assuming your broker belongs. That private organization has procedures set up for investigating complaints about its members.

After that, a more serious step is to get in touch with the state agency that issued that broker's license and has the power to take it away, or at the least to issue reprimands and impose fines. You might also talk with your attorney, to see whether the problem warrants a letter from your lawyer, a session in small claims court, or even a lawsuit.

The state doesn't license Realtors, by the way. It issues only two kinds of license: salesperson and broker. One can operate as a real estate agent without becoming a Realtor. That trademarked, capitalized word applies only to members of a private trade association.

Edith Lank will respond personally to any questions sent to her at 240 Hemingway Drive, Rochester, NY 14620 (please include a stamped return envelope), or readers may e-mail her at ehlank@aol.com.