u/Vickipoo

I bought a house and I’m learning how to handle the various maintenance, but sometimes there are issues and I don’t know what kind of professional I should hire to help me.

The current issue is the basement. It leaks whenever there is a heavy rain. Part of the house is built into the side of a hill, so I’m not sure if the leaking is due to a drainage issue or if it’s a problem with the gutters/downspout. Or maybe it’s some other issue that I don’t know about. Is a plumber the right person to hire to come out to take a look at it?

Location: Ohio.

I’m trying to understand the big picture before deciding whether it’s worth hiring a lawyer and I’m hoping someone may be able to weigh in. I’m feeling very emotional about this and am having trouble keeping it concise, so I asked for help drafting this. I’m sorry it’s still so lengthy!

Here’s the background:

My great-grandparents left a house to my grandmother for life, with the remainder to her two children (my dad and my aunt). My grandparents used the house as a rental property. After my grandmother died, the county records were updated to show my dad and aunt as 50/50 owners. My grandfather (their father) continued managing the property, collecting rent, paying taxes and insurance, and handling maintenance.

Several years later, my dad became terminally ill in his late 40s and a financial advisor helped our family with Medicaid planning. The advisor set up trusts for both my dad and my grandfather. We were repeatedly told that the house had been transferred into my grandfather’s trust, and everyone—including my grandfather—believed that had happened, with the idea being that the house would then transfer to the grandchildren after my grandpa passed.

Since then, my dad, my aunt, and my grandfather have all passed away.

After my grandfather died, I checked the county records and they still showed my dad and aunt as the owners. The financial advisor insists the transfer to my grandfather’s trust was completed, but the attorney’s office that drafted the trust documents can’t find any deed or other evidence that it ever happened. The advisor continues to insist the transfer occurred but has been unable to produce a recorded deed or any documentation showing it was ever completed. At this point, I’m concerned the transfer simply never occurred.

If that’s true, then my understanding is that my dad’s 50% interest may have remained in his individual name instead of passing through my grandfather’s trust as everyone intended.

I know this isn’t much money at stake (especially when my share is only 25%), but it’s the only inheritance I will receive, so it makes me feel really sad that the advisor seems to have messed it up and my dad’s and grandpa’s wishes will not be honored.

My questions are:

\- If my dad’s estate was subject to Medicaid estate recovery, could Medicaid potentially recover against his 50% interest?
\- If the property is only worth around $50,000 total, and my share is likely going to be taken by Medicaid, is this the type of situation where pursuing probate may cost me more than the value ultimately recovered, or is it still generally worth pursuing?
\- If none of the heirs wants act as landlord (if we can’t sell), what typically happens to a rental property that’s effectively in limbo like this? The tenants have lived there for 15+ years and are also feeling stressed.

I’m not looking for case-specific legal advice—I’m mainly trying to understand whether this sounds like a situation that’s worth paying an attorney to sort out or whether the economics don’t make sense.

And if we don’t sort it out, who gets the house? The tenants? The government? It’s all feeling emotionally heavy.

Obviously I need to just stop answering numbers I don’t recognize, but it’s pretty sophisticated to spoof the number of another large firm/legal aid.