Name change on house deeds

GemQuin

Hello,

I need some advice please - hope this is in the right place.

My Mum bought her council flat 20 years ago (leasehold) and the mortgage is fully paid off. She now lives somewhere else with her partner and I have been living in the flat for about 2 years. She now wants to put my name on the deeds and take hers off.

This is simply a 'gift'- not an attempt to hide assets.

So, is this possible? Do I need a solicitor to help? How much will it cost?
Will I have to pay CGT if she dies within 7 years (I'm pretty sure we are below the required limit for all assets anyway)
What about stamp duty since the property has obviously gone up in 20 years?

Thanks for all your advice.

seabright

The document you need is called a Transfer or a TR1. You can download it from the Land Registry website and they publish guides which might help you to do it yourself. If you submit it yourself to the Land Registry, you use their form AP1.

If the title registers show there are Restrictive Covenants you will need to include an indemnity clause on the TR1. You may need other special provisions too, it depends on the title.

You need to see a copy of the title before you fill in the TR1. You also need to check the lease to make sure there are no restrictions on transfers. The freeholder may insist you enter into a Deed of Covenant, but if you need to do this, it will be in the lease. You will need to serve Notice of Transfer on the freeholder and pay their fee for accepting this (anywhere from £50 to £150). Don't skip this step, it is important.

CGT won't be payable if she dies within 7 years, but IHT might be. No SDLT as there is no money or payment-in-kind taking place (from what you say).

Your mother should make a Statutory Declaration of Solvency, to protect your interests, in case she is declared bankrupt in the future.

Do you have siblings? Do they know about this proposed transfer? They might not be happy and if she dies/becomes incapable of dealing with her affairs they or her partner might try and claim she was forced into the transfer. An advantage of using a solicitor can be to document the wishes of the parties and prevent this happening.

Also, any major change in assets owned should prompt a review of your wills, so you and your mum should do this too.

Fire_Fox

GemQuin wrote: »

Hello,

I need some advice please - hope this is in the right place.

My Mum bought her council flat 20 years ago (leasehold) and the mortgage is fully paid off. She now lives somewhere else with her partner and I have been living in the flat for about 2 years. She now wants to put my name on the deeds and take hers off.

This is simply a 'gift'- not an attempt to hide assets.

So, is this possible? Do I need a solicitor to help? How much will it cost?
Will I have to pay CGT if she dies within 7 years (I'm pretty sure we are below the required limit for all assets anyway)
What about stamp duty since the property has obviously gone up in 20 years?

Thanks for all your advice.

It may be a gift but that doesn't stop the state deeming it to be 'deprivation of capital' if your mum later needs full time care or to claim means-tested benefits.

CLAPTON

if it is no longer her principal private residence then capital gains tax is potentially payable by her on the transfer to you

she is exempt for the period when she was residence and the last 3 years
also she has a 10,100 cgt allowance

so it probably means no tax is payable but it depends upon the detail

GemQuin

Hi,

Thanks very much for your replies.

OK, first of all no siblings and no contention about the assets. My Mum's partner is completely happy with this. My Mum is retired and is very careful with with money so she is unlikely to go bankrupt - we both have a decent amount of savings if she needs full time care and if worse came to worse I would sell the property to support her.

I think I'll need the help of a solicitor though as the paperwork sounds quite complicated and want to make sure it is done correctly. Any ideas how much this might cost? Would it be fairly straightforward for a solicitor?

I take it there will be no implications if I want to sell on the property in the future? She has already told me she'd like me to sell it and buy a new place nearer to where she lives now.

Thanks again for all your advice.

GemQuin

Sorry slightly confused about the CGT issue?

seabright

If you sell a property that isn't your principle residence you pay CGT on it. However, as this isn't a sale, but a gift exemptions may apply. I'd suggest you phone your local tax office and ask.

You don't have to give names or details, just say you are making an enquiry.

GemQuin

Brilliant - thanks for all the Info.