Mom and dad recently passed away. They put me on their house and all accounts. My nephew is living in the house. Do I have the right to make him leave?

Gunner1, my heartfelt sympathy for the recent passing of your parents.

Since your parents had no Will, then the house and other assets such as the bank accounts will need to go into the County Probate system, where a Probate Judge will decide who gets what. Since your nephew is adopted, he is also considered a heir. Nothing can be distributed, removed, sold, donated, etc until Probate is finished.

Was the house placed as co-owner along with your parents via a Quit Claim Deed, or were your parent's names removed and you were sole owner? There are pro and cons to this. It depends if your parents were of clear mind when this was done. One major thing is when it is time for you to sell the house, Capital Gains Taxes will pop up as the bases to calculate such gains goes all the way back to when your parents had bought the house.

If your parents had a Will, then the bases for calculation would be the market value of the house on the day you inherited.  Since the house isn't your primary residence, it is an "investment property" thus the taxes could be higher.  I know it can be very complicated :P

The way the nephew is responding makes it sound like that your parents might have promised him the house, forgetting that you were now owner or co-owner. Yes, this can become a tangled web. Time to consult an Elder Law Attorney.

The nephew is a legal heir, also, since he is an adopted son, yes? You say "nephew," but legally he is your brother and also will inherit if there is no will. Right? It may not be worth the fight at this point to try to evict him. You will want to get Probate Attorney's input on this first, see what they advise. If probate proceedings are going to take a year to settle, you may not be able to evict until that process is done.

I don't know that this is true (which is why I say See A Lawyer 🙂), but this isn't just a "nephew" if he has been adopted as a son. And with no will...? See an attorney to get proper input.

Yes you do - but eviction is different in different states. Many still honor "squatter's rights" - I know Mississippi does (or did).

You can start with your local sheriff (sorry about the movie pun) as I know of one person that was able to get a man to leave her trailer with the sheriff's assistance.

In Mississippi, regardless of the will, I still had to go to do probate so I had to use a lawyer. The same lawyer can most likely address your situation as I'm pretty sure you will still need to do probate.

Good luck honey and sorry for your loss.

You need to consult a lawyer and find out the process of getting him evicted in your state. If your name is on the house, and he doesn't have a lease signed by your parents, you can begin the process of evicting him. The police are treating him as a tenant who has been in residence and you will have to pursue legal remedies to get him out. Hopefully your name on the house means that you are registered in the county with the deed in your name as the legal owner and not your parents. Quit claim deeds are not "perfected" and can cause problems if not properly registered. Talk with someone who can help you file an estate if need be as well if the deed was not properly registered as your parents didn't have a will. Without a will, your nephew legally adopted by your parents has a legal right to a portion of the property that your parents owned at the time of death so be prepared for a fight.