Posted by ck_KY on 8/31/06 7:58pm
Msg #142694

Opinions on Deceased Spouse...

Completed a signing this evening for a title company. Had confirmed with the borrower the time and direction and that all parties would be present, she said yes. I get the docs very last minute, print and am out the door, (was actually a few minutes late to the appointment). When I arrive, I ask if Mr. Borrower was present, and she said he had passed away last year. We started going through the docs and her Husband's name was listed on the Mortgage, TIL, RTC and some of the Title Affidavits. There was also a Joint Tenancy Affidavit stating that Mr. Borrower had passed away on 08-16-05 and a copy of the death certificate was attached.

Why would Mr. Borrower's name appear on the docs if the Title company knew he had passed???

Reply by MistarellaFL on 8/31/06 8:10pm
Msg #142696

Probably just a simple mistake.
I wouldn't worry about it.
No matter what "they' say, notaries are NOT, I repeat NOT, the only ones who ever make a simple mistake, LOL

Reply by SueW/Tn on 8/31/06 8:12pm
Msg #142697

I can't give the exact legality, only a couple of experiences. The other day I had one where the spouse had been deceased for 26 years, his wife just didn't have the heart to take him off the DOT so whenever she refi's she must send along a certified copy of the death certificate. My Mom did the same thing until she sold, then they had to go through the motions.

Reply by DonR_NYC on 8/31/06 8:22pm
Msg #142699

Even though title is aware of the fact that a spouse has passed away the paperwork must reflect their name until such time as the deed/title to the property is changed to reflect a single owner. Until such time the deceased spouse will appear on the loan dics.

Reply by SueW/Tn on 8/31/06 8:43pm
Msg #142701

Thanks for the correct explaination Don, I thought that was it but just wasn't on solid ground...as usual...ugh!

Reply by NCLisa on 8/31/06 9:16pm
Msg #142712

That is not how it is done here.

Reply by TitleGalCA on 8/31/06 9:44pm
Msg #142713

Not done like that here either Lisa. n/m

Reply by hcampersFL on 8/31/06 10:10pm
Msg #142724

I've also had this happen. Spouse was dead for 15 years but the title had not been changed. Sent a copy of Death cert. and they signed an Affidavit that the spouse had passed.
B.

Reply by Diga2Lin/FL on 8/31/06 10:34pm
Msg #142730

And you're saying that nothing every gets recorded to clear title? - How about Probate? - don't they have to probate the property at least for tax purposes only?? At which time title can be cleared?

Reply by Sylvia_FL on 8/31/06 11:02pm
Msg #142738

Linda
I had one where the daughter was refinancing. The mothers name was on the "legals" as she was on title. When I get there I find the mother had passed away several years earlier. The daughter says she never had it changed as there is a fee involved to have it done! Duh! She has to supply a certified copy of death every time, and there is a fee involved there. The clerk doesn't give you a certified copy free.
But until she has her mother taken off the title, her mother will have to be listed on the "legals" if she refinances again.

Reply by Diga2Lin/FL on 8/31/06 11:24pm
Msg #142748

Okay - so doesn't that invalidate the docs that the obviously non-borrowing party has to sign?

Reply by Sylvia_FL on 8/31/06 11:29pm
Msg #142752

No, doesn't invalidate

Reply by Diga2Lin/FL on 9/1/06 6:19am
Msg #142783

So if I have a mortgage deed with two borrowers on it - one deceased - and I can only get one signature I continue with the signing?..I can't get the deed properly executed..I'm confused

Reply by Julie/MI on 9/1/06 8:22am
Msg #142797

title search

In Michigan, you do not get a new deed nor do you get a new mortgage when a spouse or joint tenant dies. Many people cannot figure this out. When my father died in 1976, the mortgage statement mailed every month had his name on it. When my mother paid it off, it was released under his name because that was the way it was taken out.

You simply record a certified copy of the death certificate in the county that the property is located. It will then show in the chain of title, that the spouse is deceased.

Sounds like the title company did their part but the lender didn't.

Reply by Victoria/NJ on 9/1/06 2:28pm
Msg #142927

Dead People Can't Sign

In the case of the deceased spouse, in most states the title vests to the surviving spouse and the property FULLY transfers to the spouse, under Joint Tenancy which is most commonly used with married people.

If the title agency did their job correctly, they would have vested new language into the title commitment giving the change of title (deed) vesting into the surviving spouse with a recital of the death information of the deceased. The Deed with 2 owners still remains the same unless a new deed is filed vesting into the surving spouse only.

The Lender made a mistake by adding the deceased into the mortgage docs. The Joint Tenancy Affidavit is a title agency document, not a lender doc. Without the signature of both parties, the mortgage could be un-recordable at the county level.

Ideally, the contact person who contracted you should have been made aware of the error and the deceased's name should have been omitted by a single line through the name with the surviving spouse's initials and dates. Or, replacement docs could have been sent.

Just as an FYI

Type of Ownership.

a) Sole Ownership – Owned entirely by one person.

b) Joint Tenancy – Property owned by more than one person. Each tenant has an undivided right to possess the whole property and a proportionate right of equal ownership interest. Title automatically passes to the surviving tenant at death.

c) Tenancy in the Entirety – A special form of joint ownership that requires both owners to approve any sale of the property. The joint tenants are husband and wife and neither spouse can transfer their interest without the consent of the other.

d) Tenants in Common – a form of owner for two or more owners. The individual interests do not have to be equal and the owners enjoy a proportionate right to the property. Title passes to the estate of the deceased owner and the person named by the estate assumes their proportionate title to the property and becomes the new tenant in common with the surviving tenants in common.