Commonly, children will have powers of attorney for their parents when they get older and may need assistance with financial transactions. If a child holds power of attorney for their mother and/or father, they may represent them in a real estate transaction.
Click Here – How Real Estate Investors Use a Series LLC
Children with Powers of Attorney can help their parents sell their property when the time comes and the parent is unable to do so. Attorney Nate Gilbert can assist in the process of selling the family home through power of attorney to provide funds for living expenses.
A call I often get is from clients looking to help their parent sell their home. This is commonly because the parent has moved in with the child, or another relative, and the home is sitting idle or the parent no longer wants to be burdened by the mortgage payments. This transaction is easily accomplished, especially where the buyer is another relative or friend already identified by the sellers and there is no marketing involved.
The first check we do is to make sure the child has Power of Attorney for the parent, and that that POA grants the authority to the child to sell the house—There are specially limited Powers of Attorney that do not grant this right, so it is an important thing to verify. Finally, your attorney will verify that the POA has actually vested and has not expired.
Additionally, the Power of Attorney must be an original copy, and not a scanned version or a copy. The Title Company will request the original POA for the transaction, and then return the original to the POA upon completion of closing. Do I need a real estate lawyer at closing in Texas?
Key Things To Remember Using a Power of Attorney To Sell Property:
- The Power of Attorney must grant the authority to deal in real estate or financial transactions.
- The Power of Attorney must be an original copy, not a scanned version.
- The Power of Attorney must have vested and not be expired.
- The person with Power of Attorney must sign the contracts.
- The person holding power of Attorney must represent the individual in their best interest.
Click Here – Why Do Real Estate Investors Use a Series LLC?
The important thing to remember is that the POA will be the one signing the documents and contracts for the real estate transaction, and they will be signing their own name, even though the transaction may be between the parent and the buyer. Sometimes, we have clients who misunderstand the role of the POA: you are signing your signature on behalf of your parent, not signing their name for them. As POA, you have been granted authority to sign on the behalf of another individual, and you should only ever make your own signature. Often we will denote that the signature is “By “Child”, as POA for “Parent”.
All in all, the sale of the parent’s house by a child with a proper Power of Attorney form is relatively smooth sailing. If you have questions about selling your parent’s house in Texas, reach out to The Law Office of Nathaniel Gilbert, PLLC and speak with Real Estate Attorney Nate Gilbert about your concerns. To learn more about Real Estate law in Texas, Click Here. To get in touch with Nate directly, Click Here.
