Who pays the bills?

Paradise_Found

ailuro2 wrote: »

Don't start writing strongly worded letters to someone who is likely to let it slide like water off of a duck's back - keep it all via the solicitor

I'd love to, but the solicitor won't deal with me - only my father.:rolleyes:

Even through my father feels just as strongly as I do,
because he has a meek/apologetic nature, he doesn't
want to cause trouble...

I have seen this situatioon on this particular forum countless times:
in family disputes, the most obnoxious, selfish family member almost
always wins the day over the meek, peace-loving ones; if this what
my father should do - just accept that he has lost the house?

- if your father is 75, does he really care how much of a share of the money he gets?

On the one hand, no - if there had been no house/money to inherit,
my parents would still have looked after my grandad just as diligently/
selflessly as they did.

On the other hand, my father (and my mother) invested a lot of
time/money in travelling to visit my father in hospitals/care homes
in the last five years, so as there is an inheritance, they feel that
there should at least be a 50/50 split so they can use the money
to give themselves a few holidays, etc. over the next five years...


MARK

mrcow

Your father should be able to nominate you to the solicitor to speak on his behalf. Loads of people don't like dealing with this sort of thing. I can't see why the solicitor should have a problem dealing with you if your father authorises you to speak on his behalf....


.....for health reasons more than anything else. I'm sorry to hear of his attack this morning. He really should be having to stress about this whilst also mourning the loss of his Dad.

Paradise_Found

mrcow wrote: »

Your father should be able to nominate you to the solicitor to speak on his behalf. Loads of people don't like dealing with this sort of thing. I can't see why the solicitor should have a problem dealing with you if your father authorises you to speak on his behalf....


.....for health reasons more than anything else..

I didn't know that - thanks for the tip-off!

I just want to have a word with the solicitor myself;
even if he says that there is nothing I/we can do,
at least then I will know that I did what I could to
resolve the situation...


...at times like these, I am so glad to be an only child! :rolleyes:

MARK

calleyw

Paradise_Found wrote: »

care home charges will themselves come to about £25,000,
so does that mean my Dad will end up with nothing while my
uncle walks away with the keys to a £100k house and nothing to pay?!

The care home fees and every other expenses has to come out of your grandfathers estate. Which is both the cash and the house. So if care fees are 25K and then there things like the funeral etc to be paid for again that comes out of the estate.

This will come out of the estate before anyone gets a penny. So if the house has to be sold to pay the bills then so be it. Your father and uncle are not expected to pay any of the bills themselves. If they are an executor they can either pay the bills themselves or set up a executor bank account.

Nothing is inherited until all the bills are paid.

Also don't get involved by sending any letters just keep your nose out it has nothing to do with you. Your father needs to stop getting stressed. Granted it does not seem fair. But that is what your grandfather wanted.

By all means get permission to talk to the solicitor.

I am sorry to say that wills and marriages being out the worst in people.

All the best.


Yours


Calley

Paradise_Found

calleyw wrote: »

The care home fees and every other expenses has to come out of your grandfathers estate. Which is both the cash and the house. So if care fees are 25K and then there things like the funeral etc to be paid for again that comes out of the estate.

This will come out of the estate before anyone gets a penny. So if the house has to be sold to pay the bills then so be it. Your father and uncle are not expected to pay any of the bills themselves.

I understand the above, but what if the bills can be met without selling the house?


To put it into (approximate) figures...

a) the house (left to my uncle) is worth £100k

b) the savings (left to my father) are worth 25k

If for arguments sake, the solicitors bills, 3% probate fee, care home costs,
funeral expences, etc come to exactly £25k, does that mean that my
uncle gets the house without having to pay towards any of the bills,
or do both beneficiaries have to share the legal/probate/funeral costs
in proportion to their 'split' of the estate?

To be honest, this is the main thing which is worrying my father:
that he has been left £25k, but could end up with nothing while
his brother's inheritance is left intact...


Hence the title of this topic - who pays the bills?


MARK

peediedj

Paradise_Found wrote: »

I understand the above, but what if the bills can be met without selling the house?


To put it into (approximate) figures...

a) the house (left to my uncle) is worth £100k

b) the savings (left to my father) are worth 25k

If for arguments sake, the solicitors bills, 3% probate fee, care home costs,
funeral expences, etc come to exactly £25k, does that mean that my
uncle gets the house without having to pay towards any of the bills,
or do both beneficiaries have to share the legal/probate/funeral costs
in proportion to their 'split' of the estate?

To be honest, this is the main thing which is worrying my father:
that he has been left £25k, but could end up with nothing while
his brother's inheritance is left intact...


Hence the title of this topic - who pays the bills?


MARK

read messages above,all bills will come out of his estate,so if his estate left £125k and bills are £30k then theres £95k left in his estate,your dad would get about £10k of his £25k,and either the house sold and your uncle would get £85k or he could pay £15k and keep the house

Paradise_Found

peediedj wrote: »

read messages above,all bills will come out of his estate,so if his estate left £125k and bills are £30k then theres £95k left in his estate,your dad would get about £10k of his £25k,and either the house sold and your uncle would get £85k or he could pay £15k and keep the house

Thanks - that sounds perfectly fair!

MARK

mrcow

Hi Again

I've been looking on Help the Aged's site to see if there is anything about this, but can't see anything. It's just a thought, but the following people may be able to give you some advice on behalf of your Dad:

Help the Aged
The Charity has a unique Will Advice Service through which free, confidential advice can be given to people of state retirement age. Free advice is available from a team of locally based advisers throughout England, Scotland and Wales. Trained to be aware of issues affecting older people, they will explain the will-making process in plain, jargon-free English or Welsh. They are not tax consultants or financial advisers, but can point out ways of reducing Inheritance Tax liability, including the use of trusts within a will. The Charity also offers an executorship service. Should you use this service, upon your death the local adviser will secure your home, have valuables stored safely, register the death, make
funeral arrangements, clear the house (if required) and provide practical, sympathetic support to those left behind.All the financial aspects of administering your estate will be managed by the Charity’s probate legal team. For more information on the executorship service, please contact us using the enclosed form or by calling 020 7239 1965.
Also available from Help the Aged: publications including
Planning for the End of Life and Planning for Choice in End-of-life Care (the latter including information on living wills).To order these or other Help the Aged publications, call 020 7239 1946.
Age Concern England
Astral House
1268 London Road
London SW16 4ER
Tel: 0800 00 99 66
Web: www.ageconcern.org.uk

May be at least worth a call in the morning? (Well Tuesday anyway!)

Paradise_Found

mrcow wrote: »

Hi Again

I've been looking on Help the Aged's site to see if there is anything about this, but can't see anything. It's just a thought, but the following people may be able to give you some advice on behalf of your Dad:

That sounds very promising - thanks for taking the time to look! :T

MARK

floss2

I know that you have recently been bereaved, which may have skewed your normal way of thinking, and I'm sorry if this sounds callous or rude, but if your parents are quite happy with the way your grandfather has left his estate then why are you so bothered?

Have you thought that maybe your parents spent their time & money travelling to be with your grandfather because they wanted to, not because they thought they should or in the hope of inheriting anything?