An executor who refuses to sell an inherited home, is opening themselves up to legal actions. Beneficiaries have rights, and one of those is to have an executor fulfill his or her legal obligations.
Nj.com’s recent article, “What happens when siblings can’t agree about selling parents’ home” explains that even though an executor has some discretion in administering the estate, they have a duty to settle and distribute the estate expeditiously and efficiently for the best interest of the beneficiaries.
Unless the parent’s will has specific instructions for the home, the executor—at their discretion—has two choices. They may sell it and distribute the net proceeds. The other option is to distribute the home “in kind” to the beneficiaries. That means retitling a deed from the estate to the beneficiaries as tenants in common. If the property is distributed in kind, the beneficiaries will then own the property jointly and will be jointly obligated on the home equity loan. State law may dictate that this loan isn’t not paid off with other estate assets, unless specifically instructed in the will.