My aunt had a stroke and has been bedridden for 5 years and will never walk again. She's been asking the POA to sell her 3rd story walk up condo for five years to no avail. She has some cognitive functioning but has memory loss. She can ask and answer questions well, but she forgets. She's not extremely clear but still has her faculties. She has made some poor finical choices in the past, giving away money. At first the POA said she wanted the prices to go up (And the POA is also a friend and will receive half of my aunt's estate). Then the caregiver said the POA had been "busy" (It's been five years). We asked the POA to follow our aunt's wishes a number of times but it doesn't happen. There's nothing of value left in the home, just odds and ends. It could be cleared out in a few hours. It also hasn't been rented. The cost for the last five years has been $25,000 for taxes and assessments. It could have been sold or rented for $50,000 for the five years. Our aunt lives with the POA. We don't want to cause tension or discord. What recourse does her family have to have her wishes followed through to sell the condo? We were not close with her but it seems unconscionable. I'm her nephew and have been away and just found out about this last week. There has been a lot of water under the bridge in the family so no one is interested in going to court, or something drawn out.
Who has been paying the expenses for the condo?
It's clearly against the best interests of the POA to let the property linger with no rental income and ongoing expenses, given that the POA is due to inherit from your aunt's estate. What this sounds like to me is that maybe the POA is renting out the property on the side, collecting the rents under the POA, and paying the expenses from your aunt's funds, also under the POA. That would explain being unwilling to sell the property but being willing to rack up ongoing expenses for taxes and assessments. Maybe I've watched too many crime shows, but this just seems very fishy to me.
If your aunt does not want to reassign the POA, I can't see any way to get an accounting other than a guardianship petition.
To play devil's advocate, if this lady been providing care for your grandma for the past 5 years, then maybe she is thinking of "her share" as some compensation for the care she has provided. (For example, paying an overnight caregiver for your aunt for 5 years straight at $15/hr would have cost at least $219,000. That is just for one eight hour shift a day for 5 yrs.) Your aunt's property is her property and she has a right to have access, especially to pay for her care. However, I would be cautious about assuming that the POA is trying to take advantage of your aunt. If she has been helping her out, the situation might be simple legally but much more complicated on a personal level.
It might help to figure out exactly what the POA does for your aunt and vice versa, then talk to her (with the help of an attorney) about coming up with an agreement that will make sure both are protected. Unless you really think the POA is sinister, it might be kinder to work things out that way.