Last will & Testament advice

cw2_2

Hi all, newbie here but been browsing for a long time.

I need some advice regarding a last will and testament.

9 years ago my mother was diagnosed with alzheimer's and carried out a deed transfer of her property to her daughter. (My Sister)

She passed away recently and we have since discovered that she had left a will stating that all property is divided equally between the siblings. There are also 3 savings accounts with large sums of money but the account numbers have not been included in the Will.

My questions now are:

Does the Will over ride the deed transfer and will the property be divided equally between the siblings?

What happens with the 3 savings accounts?

Any advice is greatly appreciated.

TonyMMM

The will covers the property of the person at the time they died - this will include any savings accounts (I've never seen a will with account numbers in it). Whoever is the executor of the will needs to obtain probate and deal with distibuting the proceeds , after dealing with any expenses/debts.

Property given away 9 years ago won't come into it unless you are suggesting she didn't know what she was doing or something improper went on - in which case I suggest you should take some independent legal advice (a lot of solicitors do free half hour consultations) .

never_enough

The money in the accounts will be divided between you & your siblings. Your mother didn't own the house at the time of her death, your sister did.

BitterAndTwisted

Three ways? Depends on the number of children. There's no indication of the number concerned. OP: are you worried that the deed of transfer might have been carried out when your mother was too unwell to make the decision of her own free will?

never_enough

BitterAndTwisted wrote: »

Three ways? Depends on the number of children. There's no indication of the number concerned. OP: are you worried that the deed of transfer might have been carried out when your mother was too unwell to make the decision of her own free will?

Yes sorry, I was mixing up children with savings accounts! I have altered my post, thanks Bitterandtwisted.

McKneff

Am i right in saying that there was no propery to divide, she had already given it away.

cw2_2

BitterAndTwisted wrote: »

Three ways? Depends on the number of children. There's no indication of the number concerned. OP: are you worried that the deed of transfer might have been carried out when your mother was too unwell to make the decision of her own free will?

No, I have no problem with the property going to my sister as she is younger than me and less settled than I am. There is just the 2 of us so there is no concerns of others trying to make a claim or contest the Will.

McKneff wrote: »

Am i right in saying that there was no propery to divide, she had already given it away.

Yes the property was transferred to my sister. I should be clear in the fact that I do not have a problem with the deed transfer or the property being left to my sister..

I am just concerned that the Will may over ride the deed transfer and cause both of us problems. We have both come to an agreement that she gets the property and I get the contents of the savings accounts. This makes up for the fact that I get nothing from the house.

Susan_Frost

If you have truly come to an amicable agreement between yourselves, and the will does not reflect that then, once everything is sorted you can get together and just exchange whatever between yourselves. No law against that.

dgl1001

Susan_Frost wrote: »

If you have truly come to an amicable agreement between yourselves, and the will does not reflect that then, once everything is sorted you can get together and just exchange whatever between yourselves. No law against that.

But there may be tax implications. If you are all in agreement, you should seek a deed of variation to the will which can be sought two years after her death. You need to speak to a solicitor

Mojisola

cw2 wrote: »

No, I have no problem with the property going to my sister as she is younger than me and less settled than I am. There is just the 2 of us so there is no concerns of others trying to make a claim or contest the Will.

Yes the property was transferred to my sister. I should be clear in the fact that I do not have a problem with the deed transfer or the property being left to my sister..

I am just concerned that the Will may over ride the deed transfer and cause both of us problems. We have both come to an agreement that she gets the property and I get the contents of the savings accounts. This makes up for the fact that I get nothing from the house.

Your sister is being very generous. As your mother did not own the house at the time of her death, it was not part of the estate she had to leave. Everything that is part of her estate - the savings accounts - should be divided being the two of you. Under the arrangement you have agreed with your sister, she will have nothing from the will. If she goes ahead with a deed of variation which hands over all the money to you, she is an exceptional person and you should treasure her.