In lieu of my parents, as an heir, and as a foreigner can I inherit land from my grandparents?

In Guam

Last Updated: Oct 19, 2022

My grandparent's land/property was not divided or titled to my grandparent's heirs (their children) before they passed away. My grandparents had 6 children. Til this day, the land/property is stil under my grandparent's name. I believe there's a total of 4 lands/properties. 4 out of 6 of my grandparent's heirs (my uncles) had passed away. Their children became next in line as heirs. We sold 1 land/property (stil waiting for the sale to be complete and title to be transferred to the new onwner). For this sale of land/property my 1 aunt, my cousins' (representing their family as an heir), and my mom, all gave consent and signed the "Contract To Sell" document. There's still 3 more land/properties that are not divided/titled yet. My main question is... in the event my mom passes before the land/properties are divided/titled or sold, will i be considered an heir? If yes, will I have an equal say with my aunt and cousins' in deciding what to do with the land? Should they decide to sell the land... will my signature be needed?... and will i get an equal share with rest of the heirs? Lastly, among all my grandparent's children, my mom is the only one who lives abroad. Basically, among my grandparent's grandchildren (my cousins), my sister and I are the only one's living abroad (we live in the same country). Can my aunt and cousins divide/title or sell the land/property without informing my sister and I nor not having us sign any documents for any future decisions they make? Best Regards, Rachel

Answers (1)

Posted Tue, Oct 25, 2022 7:48 AM

Hi Rachel,

Thank you for reaching out to us. Before we proceed, please note that our answer is only our opinion in accordance with your narrative and how we understand the same. 

Your question is whether you can be considered an heir when your mom passes away. Yes, this is what we call as a succession by representation. It means that you (and your siblings) will have the same right as your mom as an heir, it includes requiring your signature or consent to all activities as regards the land from your grandparents. However, this is assuming that your mom hasn't authorized any other persons to act for and on her behalf. You mentioned that a sale was already completed, so I am assuming that your mom signed the same, maybe she appointed a representative already. So, you need to check all papers that your mom signed just to make sure. 

Hope to have assisted you.

Regards,

Apple

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