Durable Power Of Attorney

[fatherof3]

I am wondering how long a durable power of attorney lasts?

According to the document which has a paragraph that states: "This Power of Attorney shall remain in force and effect until revoked by the undersigned in writing."

I never received any document that state the power had been revoked.

Here is what happened.

We purchased a house from a private party in 1985.

In 1996 our business was havingt a hard time so we got behind a little so the lady we purchasing the house from gave Duarable power of attorney to her son.

Noting more was said as all matters were cleared up.

Fast forward to 2009. Business was down a lot the summer of 09 so we paid the bills needed to keep the business open and did not pay the house payments. (We only had 5 left to go.) Come September we get a notice served from an Attorney that states that: Notice of Intent To Forfeit

It gave us a few months to clear things up, clear the default as it states, we did.

It also listed other charges such as Title report, Service fee, Copy postage, Attorney Fees, and recording fees.

Here is where the question comes into play, She signed the doucments.

I never received written notice that she revoked the power of attorney.

What should I do? Send her new Attorney a copy of that document and see what he has to say?

Is the power of attorney expired?

Any help greatly appreciated,

Fatherof3

Edited September 24, 2010 by fatherof3

[GlitterGal]

In my opinion, you probably don't have a leg to stand on. A POA grants the person in receipt the rights to act as agent. It does NOT remove the rights of the individual to act for themselves, at least not that I have ever seen.

Usually, if the individual can no longer act for themselves, a guardianship is drawn up. Think of a POA as a "just in case" sort of thing. My husband and I have POAs on each other that cover financial and healthcare situations as well as issues involving our children.

However, without that POA, the son couldn't have done anything on her behalf previously.

Does that help?

[bobe]

I would send the attorney a copy of that document. See what her attorney has to say about it.

What about the contract, does it have any wording that lets her obtain an attorney that you have to pay for?

Sounds like she is a greedy person trying to prey on people struggling in these economic times. I would bet she thought she was going to get her house back for you missing those few payments.

Good luck and keep us posted, I am interested to see what happens.