young person living on their own? - Writers Forum

SciFiGuy · 03-07-2005, 12:29 PM

Let's say there is a father and a 16 (possibly 17) yo daughter living in a house (or apartment) which he owns, and that he dies in some way. Is it possible, then, that the daughter could inherit the house or apartment and a respectable fortune (let's say it's in the will already) and live there on her own despite being this young? Would this require some special permission from the social services, would she need to prove her ability to do on her own, would they need to make visits to check up on her, etc.? Would it be possible to let a friend of the family be set to be some sort of guardian for her? These questions apply for the USA, and I don't live there but it's very likely that these stories will take place there. Are there perhaps some good websites about this?

Ajax · 03-07-2005, 12:41 PM

Try looking up "Independent Minor."

I believe that's the legal classification.

cyberspecter · 03-07-2005, 12:50 PM

Well from a legal point I think Ajax's link should help. But if I were writing this, I would find some way for her to pull this off as a subplot of your main.
For example: she inherits a lot of money... she could hire someone to pose as her gaurdian.
She could give social services the runaround tying them up with endless broken appointments that kind of thing.
If it is set in a place like New York or LA, she could easily get lost in the system.
If set in a small town in the middle of nowhere, it's harder to get around that sort of thing.

mammamaia · 03-08-2005, 09:04 AM

good ideas from cyberspecter...

pretty much all the possibilities you listed are possible, scifiguy... it's just a matter of picking a believable and/or funny enough one that will work with your plot...