Family members can’t give gift then demand repayment

Q: My husband and his brother paid for a vacation home titled in their parents’ name. My mother also paid for the mortgage. Do my husband, his brother or my mother have any legal rights to the house? Can they force my husband’s parents to pay them back?

A: The essence of your question — a frequent one in families — is whether the money was given as a gift or a loan. When you give a gift, you don’t expect anything in return. When you give a loan, you expect repayment.

You didn’t say that your husband and his brother loaned money to their parents. When you “help out,” you usually do that out of goodwill.

But our real question is what did your husband, his brother and your mother expect when they bought your in-laws the house? We can’t tell.

If your mom expected to be repaid, we hope she has something in writing from your in-laws. If there is correspondence that shows the payments were gifts, your mother may not have a right to claim repayment.

The deeper issue revolves around family situations that change. People may give family members gifts but a change in circumstances causes them to change their minds. The problem is you can’t change a gift into a loan unless the recipient agrees to repayment.

If you have no money and relatives pay your debts and bills, and later you win a huge lottery prize, you likely don’t have a legal obligation to repay the money — even if there is a moral or ethical obligation to do so.

Finally, if you don’t have title to a piece of real estate, you don’t generally obtain rights of ownership. You might have a claim if you can prove all parties intended for you to receive the home, but we don’t see it in your situation.

For more information, contact a real-estate attorney in your area.