Entertainment –
Who Gets Whitney Houston’s Money Now?

Funeral services will be held on Saturday for Bobbi Kristina Brown, daughter of R&B singer Bobby Brown and the late Whitney Houston.  However, now that Houston’s only child is deceased, who will get control of the millions of dollars from her estate?

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When Whitney Houston died in February or 2012, she left behind a fortune estimated at nearly $20 million dollars.  That amount is growing daily and could continue to grow for perpetuity, due to royalties from Whitney Houston’s music.

Whitney’s daughter, Bobbi Kristina Brown, was named in her mother’s will as the sole heir of her estate. In light of Bobbi Kristina’s death earlier this week, inquiring minds want to know: Who will receive the sizable fortune from the Whitney Houston estate, and how much is her estate really worth?

Andrew Mayoras, a principal attorney at Barron, Rosenberg, Mayoras & Mayoras and the co-author of the book Trial & Heirs, shed some light on the possible upcoming fight over Whitney’s fortune.

“There are no other children that were born to Whitney Houston, so the money goes back into Whitney Houston’s estate under the terms of her will, and will be held for the benefit of her mother Cissy Houston, and her two brothers, Michael Houston (who is married to Pat Houston, Whitney’s former manager and Bobbi Kristina’s caregiver) and Gary Garland.”

For anyone who believes Bobby Brown could now take control of Whitney Houston’s millions, Mayoras explained how unlikely it would be for Bobbi Kristina’s father to see any money from Whitney’s estate.

“Bobby Brown does not inherit anything from Whitney Houston’s will” because he was not named as a benefactor, Mayoras said.  Whitney Houston did leave a portion of money to “my husband, Robert B. Brown,” but he no longer qualifies to receive it, since they were divorced and he is no longer her husband.  However, Bobby Brown could receive money Bobbi Kristina already inherited from her mother if Bobbi Kristina didn’t have a will written up specifying otherwise.

According to the instructions of Whitney Houston’s will, a trust fund was established for Bobbi Kristina to receive 1/10th of Whitney’s estate when she turned 21. She was then set to receive 1/6th of the balance when she turned 25 and the full balance at the age of 30. However, this will not happen now that she passed away at 22.  Therefore, Bobbi Kristina likely only collected around $2 million dollars from her mother’s estate.

It’s unclear how much of that money may be left, but Bobby Brown could claim all of it as Bobbi Kristina’s closest living relative (again, provided she didn’t have a will in place that instructed otherwise).

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As for Bobbi Kristina’s long-time boyfriend Nick Gordon, Mayoras added that he would only receive money from her estate if he was named in her will.

“If Bobbi Kristina did make out a will, or name Nick Gordon as a joint owner on any of her bank accounts, then Nick Gordon would stand to receive money according to Bobbi Kristina’s estate plan,” Mayoras said, adding, “The big question there, of course, is how many 21 year olds take the time to make out a will or other estate planning documents? Most of them don’t. So there’s a really good chance there are no estate planning documents for Bobbi Kristina.”

Still, even if Nick Gordon is named in a will to receive money from Bobbi Kristina at the time of her death, the Houston and Brown families are preparing a civil lawsuit against him for causing Bobbi Kristina’s death.  If they could prove a case and win judgment against him, they could get all of that money back.  Or, if Nick Gordon gets arrested and charged in the death of Bobbi Kristina, he could forfeit any money due him from Bobbi Kristina’s estate by causing her death.

Funeral services for Bobbi Kristina will be held on Saturday, August 1st St. at the James United Methodist Church in Alpharetta, GA. On Monday, her body will then be laid to rest alongside her mother, Whitney Houston, at Fairview Cemetery in Westfield, NJ.

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Who gets Whitney Houston’s money now?