Ruby, NY Estate Planning Law Firms & Lawyers

It is always advisable to have a lawyer review your estate planning and advise you accordingly, including with respect to any modifications.  Wills can be invalidated or contested if they are not prepared properly.  It is better to pay an attorney to do it right the first time.  

Sure, but it is not up to you. The mother's estate will have to go through probate and it sounds like the house will have to be sold and the proceeds divided. The personal representative will be responsible for determining what to do with the house.

Are there other assets in your mother's estate? Was there an estate opened in probate court in the county where your mother resided at the time of her death? If an estate was opened (normally this would need to be done to effect a transfer of title on the real estate) normally the personal representative would wait six months (the period during which claims against the estate could be filed) before distributing anything. If the estate was to be divided equally, the only way to do this would be to sell the house and divide the proceeds. If there were other assets your estranged broth could request the house but he would either have to pay into the estate to make up the difference to you and your other siblings or he would have to agree to forgo any interest he may have in other estate assets to make up the difference so that all siblings would received an equal amount. You should retain counsel for this.