Life estate, the property has been sold but you the real estate seller stay on board.
Still retain use of the real estate after the listing sale. But upon death or signing off your right for possession of the property, the place space that was retained, it’s useage goes to the record owner. 
We run into life estates in cases where the real estate owner is elderly.
The Nana, Grampy who wants to sell.
Get out from under the maintenance, the property expense.
But still call it home sweet home.
Like they never left for the real estate closing or had to pass the keys please. Staying for the rest of their life on Earth. If the place was sold with a life estate retained.
In the property say a Maine farm they just sold but retained use.
Until death. Or until having to move to a round the clock facility. Preparing for the final demise. The last ride.
Sometimes there is a rent that is fixed, stays the same in the life estate real estate property sale.
Other times no monthly rent but the actuary tables kick in. Doing the math that if the owner become renter is say ninety six years old. The chart says the this much extra life remains based on the numbers. Like insurance salesmen for life products work with daily. Just math but involving people.
The price the Maine property sells for when there is retain usage of the premises.
Whether the life estate is a small space. Either the entire home or just a unit in a rental complex. Regardless the price the property fetches on the open market for real estate dives.
What the property in Maine sells for, that number when there is a life estate factored in for a contingency of the sale.
It is lower when the owner is sticking around. Going to be tying up the use of all or part of the property being sold. But not moving out before or during the real estate closing day of closing. 
Hanging around to continue to enjoy the inside.
While the new owner spiffs up the outside, pays property taxes, insurances and carries the place for a reduced purchase price.
All factored in to the real estate sale.
How attractive the price for the property listing becomes is directly tied to the possession details on the listing use that is retained.
I have seen two cases of rental apartments in four unit places being life estates. Spelled out in the deed, the fine print in legalese. Where the property owner sells, retains a life estate for the pair of owners. The widow stays on and the “rent” does not change. Or there is no “rent” assessed.
But eventually we all die. Chances are you can bet on that possible outcome. When everything you collected, hung onto is packed up, given away to someone.
And the retained use area, real estate space is free to use by the new owner who has been waiting. Or did not need the roof and four walls, floor. And then just rents to another. But for today’s market rent monthly.
Or the real estate property owner may have bought the property for just the land underneath it.
So when the life estate expires, a wrecking ball and excavator both rumble, roll into place.
To remove the sticks and bricks. Level the place for new construction of a structure or just pavement added to make it a parking lot.
Or in the case of the Maine farm property sale, the nice but frail owner continues to enjoy the house. Comes home from the real estate closing like nothing has changed. No fuss, no muss. using, enjoying the farm house.
While the green or red or blue tractors down the road invade. Circle the house industriously. The Maine farmer and sons down the road expands their operation to use the extra land, outbuildings that Nana does not need for day to day enjoyment. With an eye that someday, one of the junior farmers will be living in this house Nana now enjoys.
Life estate real estate sales in Maine with retained possession.
Have seen a property sold, transferred a number of times and that life estate is part of the deal. Every time, new owner but same past property seller still hanging on and figured into the Maine real estate transfer.
Life estate, signed off if the person(s) in possession want to give up the space they retain after a real estate sale.
Or enjoyed until the last breath where the property use automatically conveys to the property owner who is already on record as the one in charge. That owns the property, just not the entire use of it that was retained in the life estate of the real estate.
I’m Maine REALTOR Andrew Mooers, ME Broker
207.532.6573 | info@mooersrealty.com |
MOOERS REALTY 69 North Street Houlton Maine 04730
