Marriage, relationships & families

Hi, As my Dad gets older, I worry more about his mental capacity. We've been advised to grant me full Power of Attorney and wondered where to start with it? Some of the online guides look very ominous with pitfalls and expenses in every direction. Money is short, so while I don't want to do things "on the cheap", I have to…

Hello, my wife and I are getting divorced. It is all amicable and we have managed to get nearly everything agreed without the need for involving solicitors. The thing we cannot work out is how to fairly share any growth in the price of our family home. We think there must be lots of other people who have managed to…

My partner and 2 siblings recently were appointed Attorneys of their mother's Financial and Health. Mother is now diagnosed as having Dementia. One sibling has mum's bank statements and has noticed a very recent payment (after the LPA was granted) to the office of public guardian which looks like she has changed one of her…

During a particularly competitive board game this Christmas, where I blocked my husband's next "killer move", he joked that my actions could be seen as grounds for divorce. I said "you go right ahead, as I'd end up better off than you, as I'd have half your pensions" (he's currently in receipt of two of his work related…

I was briefly married for 3 months and we separated. No kids, no joint accounts and the house was already bought by myself before marriage. She contributed nothing either. I applied for a annulment in may 2021. The decree nisi was granted in September 2021. However it hasn't been pronounced after all this time so I can't…

Hi As my father grows older and his health continues to decline, I would like to start the process to obtain power of attorney over his health and finances. I see there are many companies charging for this, but I'm also told it's fairly straight forward to DIY it. As the only child and no partner, can anyone advise a good…

Sorry if this isn't the right place for this post, not really sure what category is most appropriate. It's looking like it's time to set up LPA for my very elderly step-father. We are thinking one of his sons and one of his step-daughters to do it jointly. My sister seems to think that anyone who is named as having LPA…

Hi, I was wondering, if I was to manage an Air Bnb listing for a property that isn't mine, would I need to submit the tax return or the owner? The Air Bnb account would be under my name and the payouts would go to my account where I would then split the earnings 50% and give what is owed to the owner but if the account and…

Martin Lewis's blog Is it time to ban Christmas presents? was first published in 2009 but has just been updated. It examines the benefits of forgoing presents altogether. Would you and your family consider it? Perhaps you do this already?

What are the best board and card games to play with family at Christmas? Have you spotted any deals recently? And which classic games can you play free online or repurpose for Zoom?

Back in October my husband died suddenly so the last few weeks have been a total nightmare as not only have I had to deal with his death & all that entails but I've had to, with the help of some real great people, the clearing of his office, the winding down of our business & find a job as I worked in the business. Anyway,…

Not sure this is the right category for this… I recently created a small claim online against my ex who owed me his half of a holidays flights and hotel. he has paid part of the claim directly into my bank account. im not sure what to do next. I don’t accept the part payment and require the full amount. How do I tell the…

So my ex husband and I have signed our financial order and is being approved by the judge as we speak he’s buying me out for a lump sum and I have to vacate the house with my children & our belongings on a set date (as set out and agreed in the order) just needing some advice on grounds of staying in the property with his…

Hi, i am single with no kids & have a will made out to my brother that when i die to sell everything & to distribute my estate across several charity's & people of my choosing as a percentage to each one minus any expenses he would encore of up to £1000-00 per charity/person. He is now nearly 80 & i dont want to burden him…

Years ago now I was gifted some shares when the building society I had savings with became a bank, therefore I had a few shares that cost me nothing, I have just cashed them in for £400.00, would there be any tax to pay?

Both kids attend a local mosque for classes in the evening. Me and ex are separated and he originally paid the fees but stopped paying last year. He refuses to contribute for half either saying CMS covers it. Now I have taken over the fees and have settled the arrears and pay monthly. Last week it was parents evening and…

I divorced 15 years ago and as part of the settlement, I got 50% of one of my partner's pensions when they reached the age of 65. I still have the court order. Last week, that ex-partner reached 65 and I asked them about my 50%. They told me they had bought an annuity with it some years ago and had been drawing about £600…

I tend to take myself too seriously and I am trying to address this by becoming more playful. I came across this recently: https://theflirtmethod.com/ There are lots of free videos on You Tube by this author. My main concern is that you have to buy directly from the author i.e. on their website instead of using a known…

How does one properly take care one's elderly parent in England if you don't wish for them to be in a home? I'm early 40s and my hubs is mid 50s. He has a brother and sister. He's the first and the one who does the most for his mum. His siblings combined don't do up to a quater of what he does for their mum. He has a…

I am in the process of getting divorced. Our house has just sold and I will get approx 130,000 from the sale. I am on a low income with a top up of Universal Credit. I have been told, I do not earn enough to privately rent and with the equity, unlikely to qualify for social housing. CAn I get an interest free mortgage to…