No will, 4 kids

[ncool]

My ex-husband's father died 6 years ago and left no will. He was not married, but has 4 adult children, who unfortunately do not get along. The father had a small piece of property and an old house that is falling down. The oldest sister is just biding her time until all the other heirs are gone so she and her husband can put a trailer park in, which no one wants to happen. My ex husband is dying from lung cancer that has spread through his entire body. We don't know how long he has to live. He wanted to live on the property where he grew up, but the well is contaminated and the septic is not appropriate. He has tried to get assistance with putting in a new well and septic, but was told they can't help him because he does not actually occupy the house. Of course he doesn't own it either and he can't occupy it due to his health and it's condition. His older brother initially paid the father's debts and property taxes. My ex has been paying the taxes ever since and maintaining the property. There has been no financial help from the 2 sisters, but they did remove most of the father's belongings from the house and kept them for themselves. My ex is currently living in a camper, but winter will be here soon. His brother is willing to help him go through probate and he would leave the property to his brother upon his death, but no one knows how to start the process or whether he would even be able to get the property. My ex is on SSDI and can't afford a lawyer. Can they do it without one? I would think the judge could see that the sister's already got their part of the father's estate. How long will probate take? We don't know for sure how long he has. Another question is that the older brother got some money from one of the sister's agreeing to relinquish his interest in the property because his wife had died and he needed money for her expenses. Will this hold up in court as him not having any further interest in the property? Because if not he would try to go through probate himself and let his brotehr live on the property until his death. Also would this be considered a formal probate proceeding? Does the judge usually just divide it among the kids regardless of circumstances? Thank you.