Columbus, Ohio – A new Trust & Will survey of 1,000 adults shows a stark gap between what families expect and what actually happens when a house is inherited. While 56% of respondents who have already inherited real estate sold the property, only 35% of those who expect to inherit a home say they will sell.
Why families often choose to sell
Homeowners who inherit a house face immediate costs that can outweigh sentimental value. Property taxes, insurance, utilities, routine maintenance and, in many cases, an existing mortgage all create ongoing financial obligations. As Samantha Halvorson, chief executive of LegacyGuard Estate Planning, explains, “Parents often look at the family home and see something they spent decades building and preserving. Their children can love that home just as much and still reach the conclusion that keeping it does not make financial or practical sense.”
Survey details
The survey split participants evenly between those who had received an inheritance in the past 20 years and those who anticipate an inheritance in the next 20 years. Overall, 38% said real estate was or would be part of their inheritance, and 72% of those properties were primary residences.
Among past heirs, 30% sold the house after owning it for at least a year and another 26% sold within the first year. By contrast, only 17% of future heirs said they would become landlords, and 35% plan to keep the inherited home as their primary residence.
Sibling dynamics add complexity
When multiple siblings inherit a single property, differing financial situations can make consensus difficult. One child may live nearby and want to move in, another may be across the country, and a third may need cash for a new home, retirement or other priorities. “You do not need a family feud for this to become difficult,” Halvorson notes. “Three children can get along perfectly well and still have three completely different financial situations and three different ideas about what should happen to the property.”
If one sibling wishes to keep the house, they may need to buy out the others, requiring sufficient funds or financing. Alternatively, siblings might choose to rent the property together, but that arrangement brings shared responsibilities for repairs, tenants, insurance and taxes.
Estate‑planning tools can help
Proper estate planning can reduce uncertainty. A revocable living trust, for example, can allow a house to be administered according to the trust’s terms rather than passing through probate. However, the trust must be funded correctly; simply naming a trust on paper does not automatically transfer ownership.
According to the survey, 31% of respondents lack a will or trust altogether, including 30% of those who have already experienced an inheritance. This gap highlights the need for families to discuss not only who receives an asset, but also how the asset will be managed or disposed of.
Takeaway for Ohio families
For Ohio homeowners, the data suggest that many inherited homes become financial burdens rather than lasting family legacies. Engaging an estate‑planning attorney early can clarify ownership structures, address potential sibling disagreements and provide options such as trusts or buy‑out provisions that align with a family’s long‑term goals.
LegacyGuard Estate Planning, which works with a nationwide network of attorneys, emphasizes that “a parent might say, ‘I want the house to go equally to my children,’ and that answers who receives it. It does not answer whether they should sell it, whether one child should have the opportunity to keep it, or what happens if they all want something different.”
Original reporting: KTBS 3 (Shreveport) — read the source article.
