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My aunt had a stroke and has been bedridden for 5 years and will never walk again. She's been asking the POA to sell her 3rd story walk up condo for five years to no avail. She has some cognitive functioning but has memory loss. She can ask and answer questions well, but she forgets. She's not extremely clear but still has her faculties. She has made some poor finical choices in the past, giving away money. At first the POA said she wanted the prices to go up (And the POA is also a friend and will receive half of my aunt's estate). Then the caregiver said the POA had been "busy" (It's been five years). We asked the POA to follow our aunt's wishes a number of times but it doesn't happen. There's nothing of value left in the home, just odds and ends. It could be cleared out in a few hours. It also hasn't been rented. The cost for the last five years has been $25,000 for taxes and assessments. It could have been sold or rented for $50,000 for the five years. Our aunt lives with the POA. We don't want to cause tension or discord. What recourse does her family have to have her wishes followed through to sell the condo? We were not close with her but it seems unconscionable. I'm her nephew and have been away and just found out about this last week. There has been a lot of water under the bridge in the family so no one is interested in going to court, or something drawn out.

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Now that I know my original suspicion was incorrect, I think maybe Countrymouse is on to something. Maybe the POA doesn't have the energy for this. Why not just offer to move forward without her - empty the apartment, bring in a realtor, and involve her only to sign the papers once a sale is made. If you have keys to the place, you have the ability to move forward without the POA, with just a verbal approval from your aunt. That's what I would do.
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My first question is how old is the POA friend? Are you sure she's coping with looking after your aunt all right?
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The lady is your aunt's POA, not her legal guardian. If your aunt wishes to sell her condo and it makes financial sense, then the POA should sell it. So does your aunt live in the POA's home and the condo is sitting uninhabited? Does the POA provide care? Does your aunt pay for care or pay rent?

To play devil's advocate, if this lady been providing care for your grandma for the past 5 years, then maybe she is thinking of "her share" as some compensation for the care she has provided. (For example, paying an overnight caregiver for your aunt for 5 years straight at $15/hr would have cost at least $219,000. That is just for one eight hour shift a day for 5 yrs.) Your aunt's property is her property and she has a right to have access, especially to pay for her care. However, I would be cautious about assuming that the POA is trying to take advantage of your aunt. If she has been helping her out, the situation might be simple legally but much more complicated on a personal level.

It might help to figure out exactly what the POA does for your aunt and vice versa, then talk to her (with the help of an attorney) about coming up with an agreement that will make sure both are protected. Unless you really think the POA is sinister, it might be kinder to work things out that way.
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Thank you for the comments. Mentioning social services or an attorney will probably help. We have the keys to condo. It's not being rented out. I saw the comment about my aunt being taken advantage of. The thing is I'm not sure what's happening. I don't see how the POA could benefit from letting it sit for five years. The POA will get half the estate if anything is left. I agree my aunt may very well need the money for her care. I can't believe the POAs reason of not having time or waiting for the price to go up. At a loss of 50k I could have had the place cleared in 3 hours, called someone to clean it, and had a realtor do the rest (The POA already took everything valuable from her condo). It could be finished in 10 hours or work. My aunt pays the taxes and assessments. It could have been 100k getting interest, without 25k in assessments and taxes. It adds up. Take care everyone.
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If your aunt won't appoint a new POA, you or another family member may need to go to court to obtain conservatorship over her estate.

It's clearly against the best interests of the POA to let the property linger with no rental income and ongoing expenses, given that the POA is due to inherit from your aunt's estate. What this sounds like to me is that maybe the POA is renting out the property on the side, collecting the rents under the POA, and paying the expenses from your aunt's funds, also under the POA. That would explain being unwilling to sell the property but being willing to rack up ongoing expenses for taxes and assessments. Maybe I've watched too many crime shows, but this just seems very fishy to me.

If your aunt does not want to reassign the POA, I can't see any way to get an accounting other than a guardianship petition.
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When you suspect there is dirty work at the cross roads the first person to talk to is a lawyer.
Who has been paying the expenses for the condo?
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Sorry to hear there is concern with the current POA. But I'm afraid your aunt is being taken advantage of financially given her condition after the stroke. Please don't be afraid to stand up to the POA or involve social services if necessary. As family members we want to keep the peace and not make waves, but sometimes this is absolutely critical to ensure the right thing is done. Your aunt needs to be taken care of financially and might need these funds to finance her care.
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If she still has her faculties, get an attorney who will come to the house and determine if she is competent enough to assign a new poa.
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