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Inheriting a Mortgaged Home: Getting Information and Taking Next Steps

Inheriting a home involves both ownership documents and the existing loan. A mortgage does not simply disappear, and a servicer needs to establish who may receive account information. The way a property was held can affect the next steps. Gather the relevant estate or trust documents before deciding how to keep, transfer, or sell the home.

The questions below use selected Consumer Financial Protection Bureau guidance, adapted and organized by Fynoptic. Source links and the dates displayed by those sources are provided at the end.

How do I get mortgage information about a home I inherited?

To receive certain information about the mortgage account, you should contact the mortgage servicer. You may need to show the mortgage servicer proof of your right to the home.

You should inform the loan servicer if you’ve inherited a home from someone. The mortgage servicer is the company that sends the monthly mortgage statement, responds to borrower inquiries and keeps track of principal and interest paid.

To receive certain information about the mortgage account, you may need to show the mortgage servicer proof of your right to the home. In the case of inheritance from someone who has died, that proof might include a copy of the executed will and the death certificate or a letter from the executor of the deceased person’s estate. The mortgage servicer should tell you what kind of proof it needs. The proof that you can get may vary from state to state.

You also may want to ask the servicer for further information about your rights and obligations with respect to the house and the mortgage. For example, you might ask the servicer how you can continue making payments on the loan or how you can seek a loan modification.

You may also want to consult an attorney or a housing counselor. You can use the CFPB's "Find a Counselor" tool to get a list of Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD)-approved counseling agencies in your area. You can also call the HOPE™ Hotline, open 24 hours a day, seven days a week, at (888) 995-HOPE (4673).

If you’re facing imminent foreclosure or have been served with legal papers, you may also need to consult an attorney.

If you have a problem with the mortgage, you can submit a complaint to the CFPB onlineor by calling (855) 411-CFPB (2372).

I recently inherited a house. The mortgage lender said it's required to determine my "ability to repay" before it will let me take over the mortgage loan. Is this true?

Not necessarily. If you already have title to the house, the CFPB’s rules don’t require the lender or servicer to determine your ability to repay before it lets you take over the mortgage loan.

Here are some common ways to get the title to a house:

  • Inheritance
  • Legal separation or divorce
  • Other types of transfers:
    • Transfers to living trusts
    • Transfers from parents to children before the parent dies
    • Joint Tenancy with Right of Survivorship, when someone who co-owns a home with someone else gets full ownership when the other person dies
    • Other family-related transfers

Usually, when someone takes out a mortgage, a lender is required to make sure the borrower can repay the loan. This is called evaluating the borrower’s “ability to repay.” When the borrower already has the title to the house before they take on the mortgage loan, a lender or servicer is not required to evaluate the ability to repay the loan.

Tip: You may need to show the mortgage servicer proof of your right to the home. In the case of inheritance, for example, that proof might include a copy of the executed will and death certificate or a letter from the executor of the deceased person’s estate. The documents that will prove the death of the borrower may vary from state to state.

If you need advice for your situation, you may want to get help from a housing counselor. You can call (888) 995-HOPE (4673) to be connected to a HUD-approved housing counseling agency. You can also find a housing counselor near you.

If you have a problem with your mortgage, you can submit a complaint with the CFPB online or by calling (855) 411-CFPB (2372).

What is a revocable living trust?

A revocable living trust is an arrangement set up through a legal document. The document gives someone the power to make decisions about another person’s money or property that’s held in the trust.

What is the purpose of a revocable living trust?

People use trusts to keep control of their money and property and to designate who receives money and property once they die. One reason to set up a revocable living trust is to avoid the probate process after death. Probate is a public process, and it can be expensive and lengthy. At the same time, the trust allows a person to continue using the assets transferred to the trust (for example, living in a house or spending money from investments).

A trust can also be set up give someone else the power to make financial decisions on the person’s behalf in the event they become unable to make their own decisions, for example because of injury or illness.

There are three roles under a revocable living trust:

  • The person who makes the trust. They might be called the settlor, grantor, or trustor.
  • The person who makes decisions about the money or property in the revocable living trust. They are called the trustee. In general, during the life of the grantor, the grantor is their own trustee. A trustee can be an individual or a financial institution. If there is more than one, they are co-trustees. A successor trustee can also be named but can act only if a trustee can no longer fulfill their role, for example, in the event they die or are disabled. A trustee is a fiduciary.
  • The people who receive money or property from the revocable living trust. They are called beneficiaries. The person who makes the revocable living trust could be the only beneficiary while they are alive, or they could name co-beneficiaries (for example, themselves and their spouse) who receive some money or property from the revocable living trust before they die. The people who receive money or benefits from the revocable living trust after the person dies are called residuary beneficiaries.

A living trust is ineffective until the person who makes the trust puts their money or property into it. Then, the trustee has authority over the money or property after it’s transferred to the revocable living trust. A grantor typically names themself the trustee in a revocable living trust (though it can be another person). Then, a successor trustee takes over for the grantor as trustee after the grantor has lost the capacity to manage their property.

When you’re acting as trustee or successor trustee, you have the legal authority to spend and invest the money and property in the revocable living trust for the benefit of the named beneficiaries. You don’t, however, have legal authority over any money or property that’s not in the trust.

For more information on trusts, read our guide for trustees on managing someone else’s money.

Sources and further reading

The CFPB source passages are U.S. government work in the public domain. Fynoptic has selected, organized, and adapted the material for this guide, including corrections identified through the additional sources listed above. Sources accessed October 27, 2026. This use does not imply agency endorsement or affiliation.

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