Advice Please!-Getting Sister out of deceased mums flat

wee_den

I would be very grateful if anyone could advise me on how to get our sister, her partner, son, dogs & cats out of my deceased mums one bedroom flat.

She was having financial problems down south and people were chasing them for money and my mum had passed away a year past in April. Me and my brother were in the process of decorating the flat to put it on the market and she pleaded with us to let her and the wee man move in till they got a council flat.

Her partner was suppose to go and stay at his parents with the animals but on the day of the move (during transit) she called to say this would not be happening as his mum had said no and I was put in an awkward position and agreed with mu two brothers to let them all move into mums.

We are now a year down the line and they are still living there rent free, not paying council tax and have had sky tv & broadband installed!

We need to get the flat on the market as we want to get rid of mums flat and move on (not being heartless, but when it is still in the family it is just a constant reminder) but with the animals in it and they are both smokers all the decor we did is now crap.

Been to a lawyer who has wrote twice to them and still they have not moved and now my sister is pregnant again!

Lawyer says we will need to go to court to get them out, so far it is just costing us money and they are the only people paying nothing and probably laughing at us!

Any advice gratefully received, btw we live just outside Glasgow so I do not know if Scottish law is different than English and I do not even know if Ive posted this in the correct place!

wee_den

crazycatlady1984

hey! thats rubbish! does your sister or her partner work? Ie could they be paying rent? I know you dont want rent, you just want them out so you can sell, but sounds pretty cheeky that they can pay for Sky TV and not chip in some rent money!

Are you close to your sister? Have you asked her to leave?

theartfullodger

Sorry to hear about your mother.

Have you got probate yet?? If not i think the property is owned by the estate-of-deceased-mum and being able to enforce anything as estate-of-deceased-mum may well be difficult.

If you have probate then I think you need a solicitor expert in landlord/tenant law as chances are that's what sis would use in any defence against legal action.

I've never used them (but heard them speak at a seminar - impressed) - TC Young..
http://www.tcyoung.co.uk/page/Home.aspx

Heavily used by Scottish Association of Landlords so hopefully they would know their stuff..

The local friendly solicitor is all very well but unlikely to have the detailed knowledge required in this area. Assume sis will get legal aid help, possibly from Shelter, an excellent & very competent charity who really do know their stuff..

Alternatively try bribery, but she doesn't sound like she'd fall for that one..

btw I'd strongly advise against charging rent or even saying there was an agreement to pay rent - that would put you into the "Landlord" camp with the need for registration etc (fine for non-registration just went up to £50k..) and as getting her out might be even more tricky...

Hope it works out..

The things people do!! Has she no shame??

wee_den

Thanks, no we do not want to charge her rent as she is our sister but on the other hand she and her partner (not a nice man AT ALL!) have not spoken to us all in over 6 months. It is getting horrible now and all we want to do is sell it and then they have a nice sum to start again, we are all skint and the flat is only worth around £40k... So frustrating.

wee_den

Yes my brother was awarded probate over two months ago and this is still draging on! Her partner is an !!!, who quotes all the laws etc and he use to do this and that and ran this business and that business but they dont have to pennies to rub together!

I am so angry, they play on my good nature every time and I always seem to be the one losing money! :-(

NathanE

Can't you just put it up on the market in its current state? Not ideal I know. But it would give your sister a very clear indication to start looking for other lodings...

pararct

You are going to have to be cruel to be kind.
They have children therefore the council will find them somewhere.

The council will not find them anything all the time they have a roof over their head (the circumstances that they pay no rent ect are of no concern to the Council).

You will need to make them 'unintentionally homeless' in order to get the council to act.

To do that you and make them 'unintentionally homeless' you have to get a court order to evict them.

By the looks of it there is no other way around this. Even if you were able to convince them to go of their own accord the council would take the view they had made themselves homeless and refuse to assist.

The complications here are that your sister may be entitled (if it is willed) to some of the proceeds of the sale of the asset? On that basis she probably has a part share of the property.

You will need to consult a solicitor who specialises in such an area for expert advice. Do not rely upon anything anyone (including myself) here tells you simply use it for advice.

BitterAndTwisted

It would be entirely fair to deduct any refurbishment costs from your sister's share of the proceeds once you've managed to evict them and got the place sold.

See a solicitor asap. Many offer a free half hour consultation when you can describe what you need them to do and they will give you an indication of the procedures and costs involved.

agrinnall

In addition the council tax situation needs to be sorted out, somebody has to pay it but I'm afraid I don't know who is responsible in this situation. CIS is probably the best person to advise but I'm not sure if he/she will look at this thread, it might be worth posting on the Cutting Tax board with Council Tax mentioned in the thread title and a link to this thread along with a request for advice.

BitterAndTwisted

The occupants are most definitely responsible for Council Tax regardless of whether they're tenants paying rent or family members squatting without consent

Jeffrey_Shaw

NathanE wrote: »

Can't you just put it up on the market in its current state?

No. Only the brother is executor, so only he has capacity to sell.