@rlwremo42
The issue of stepped up basis is really important and sorry I forgot to mention it.
In general, if you bought your home with your spouse, the IRS looks at it as though you each own half. When your spouse dies, you inherit your spouse's ownership interest with a new basis equal to the fair market value on the date they died, your basis is "stepped up."
For example, if you purchased the home for $100,000, each of you has a basis of $50,000 in your half of the home. Suppose that on the day your spouse dies, the home is worth $250,000. Your spouse's half is worth $125,000 and you receive that stepped up basis when you inherit their half. So your total basis is $50,000 for your half and $125,000 for the inherited half, equals $175,000. That means that if you sell for $200,000, your capital gain subject to tax is $25,000 rather than $100,000.
I'm sorry for the situation you find yourself in and you have our sympathy. You may want to hire a financial advisor of an elder law attorney to help manage your finances around this difficult time. (I say elder law attorney because they specialize in end of life situations, even if you are not elderly.) There are steps you can take to improve your financial situations and there are mistakes you need to avoid, and an emotionally difficult time is when you need an expert to help you out.
