Who Gets the House? Estate-Planning Don'ts From Celebs

Recently we wrote about real estate and divorce. But breakups aren't the only partings that can get messy when it comes to property. Death has a way of sending real estate holdings into the same kind of turmoil.

Should the daughter who moved in with her mother to take care of her be allowed to live in the house after Mom dies? Should the new wife get the home the first family was raised in? What if four siblings inherit a vacation home and all but one want to sell it?

Family dynamics and human nature transcend wealth and fame. The issues of how to pass on your real estate holdings have played out on a public stage, thanks to celebrities like Michael Jackson (whose funeral cortege is pictured above) and Katharine Hepburn. There are lessons to be learned from them.

AOL Real Estate spoke with attorney Danielle Mayoras, co-author of "Trial and Heirs," for advice on how to avoid property-inheritance mistakes.