Should I Kick Family Members Out of the House I Inherited?

The caller, Megan, seeks advice on a complex family situation involving a rental property inherited from her recently deceased mother. Her father passed away 15 years prior. The property is now owned by Megan and her two sisters. Her cousins currently reside in the rental property. Megan's sisters want to be bought out of their share of the house. Megan and her husband are interested in moving into this larger rental property because their current two-bedroom house, at 750 square feet, is too small for their growing family, as they have one baby and another on the way. They plan to buy out their sisters for approximately $350,000 and then rent out their current house, which only has a $50,000 mortgage remaining. Renting their current house, which is a two-unit property, would cover the mortgage on the new house. The main issue is that the cousins, who are living rent-free and only paying property taxes and utilities, have a five-year lease agreement with Megan's late mother. This agreement, which may have originated from a prior debt owed by the mother, means they only pay for the upkeep of the house. Two years of this lease have passed, leaving three more years. While Megan and her sisters initially agreed that the cousins could stay as long as it wasn't a financial burden, Megan's family's need for a larger home creates a conflict. Megan is hesitant to buy another house now because if the cousins decide to leave the inherited property unexpectedly, she might not qualify to buy out her sisters' shares if she's already committed to another mortgage. She also considers offering her smaller house to the cousins in exchange for the larger one, but acknowledges it might be presumptuous. The hosts point out that the cousins are within their rights to stay for the duration of the lease and that Megan is creating a timeline based on her discomfort. They suggest she decouple her plans from the cousins' timeline and either wait the three years, even if it means sacrificing space with her children sharing a room, or accept that she doesn't have to move into that specific house. A significant detail revealed late in the conversation is that the cousins own another house they could live in, which the hosts found frustrating. The hosts emphasize that Megan is putting her future in the hands of others, which leads to frustration because she cannot control their actions.