[fireant911]

My mother just passed away. Prior to this unfortunate event, she was adamant about her wishes and we (me and two other brothers) intimately knew of her desires. One of the things that she had stated was her home was to be sold and the proceeds distributed evenly among the three boys (my father passed away in 1996).

My niece has just recently graduated from college and this may be a great solution for her AND she has expressed an interest in purchasing this residence. Rather than place my mother’s home on the open market, we (the brothers) would prefer ‘keep this in the family’ since the property was purchased by my mother and father in the 50's. We will be getting a bank appraisal for this house (built in 1987) to determine the value and I am curious if anyone else that has experienced a similar situation has any wisdom to share. The house, of course, has been completely paid off years ago.

I am fully aware of the warnings about doing any financial dealings with family members but I can overlook such frustrations (trust me, my older brother’s family has not spoken to my family in four and a half out of the last eight years because of foolish and unjustified reasons). We are in process of meeting with an attorney to discuss the other monies involved but this question ONLY addresses the house. What advice and/or wisdom can others, who have already gone through the selling of a deceased parent's home, offer?