Death in the family, but no will. Anything that can be done here?

Nine_Lives

Basically my mum, her brothers & sisters have been given the call to get in & see my granddad asap as the hospice he's at think that today is the day. If he makes it through then it's going to be real soon as he's really not well at all.

After my dads death last year & going through probate & all the "clearing up" afterwards, we saw first hand how much easier a will can make things.
So i told my mum to see my granddad about whether he'd made a will.
He hadn't. When my mum & my aunt spoke to him about going & getting one drawn up, after initially being ok with the idea, he shut down totally according to my mum & wasn't interested.

In his flat he has few possessions really. He split up with my nan (the same mum to my mum & all her brothers & sisters) before i was born & i'm coming 30 now. My nan married another man, who she's been married to for again, longer than i've been born.

My granddad (when he was ok with speaking about wills) said he had a claim/share in the house that my nan & her fella live in & that he'd leave this split between his remaining kids (which surprised my mum as at the time he didn't have anything to do with a few of them).

But obviously, no will - that's not going to happen now. The end result will be that it'll go totally to my nan & her fella.
The concern of my mum, my aunts & uncles is that my nan will go first, leaving the house in sole ownership of her fella, who they don't get along with due to the goings-on around one of my aunts deaths, plus they feel that he's turned my nan away from her family.


What i'm on here today for is to see whether it's a case of "tough luck" or whether the situation can be challenged by my granddads kids.

I've not been asked to ask this, but i can see where this episode is likely to go & just thought i'd try & help if i could.

Thanks.

DylanO

I think it's a bit disrespectful to speak of your grandmother's husband in such a way - especially as they've been together for more than 30 years.

In regards to their house and your grandfather's share - it would depend on how it's held. Joint tenants or tenants in common. Or perhaps this is detailed in the divorce documents - either way you need to find out.

Either way if your grandmother's husband has paid for the house for the last 30 plus years - then how dare your mother, aunts and uncles expect to own it - especially as they clearly don't like him. It's outrageous.

Nine_Lives

Thanks for your reply.

Though to be honest, i don't think you should be so quick to judge when you know nothing about the situation at all & i'm not about to go into detail here either.
Bit disrespectful? If you knew what the man did surrounding the death of his wifes daughter then i don't think you'd be so quick to comment in such a way. If you knew what he had done & said towards his wifes other children then again i don't think you'd be so quick to comment.

The question isn't regarding this chaps share, or my grans share, it's about the share my granddad has/had, which he WAS going to sign over to all his kids, until he got news of cancer which can't be treated, which then made him uninterested in anything really, such as making a will. It is only this share which my granddad says he owns, that this thread is about. If he wanted to sign it over to his kids (before he got ill), then what is wrong with that?

DS4215

Not having a will doesn't mean that his share in the house passes to his ex-wife, but is split between his surviving kids. Obviously this depends on how the house is owned.

Person_one

Why would it go to your nan? They are divorced so she's no longer his next of kin.

Anything he does have will be divided equally between his children I think, although I'd be very surprised if he had a stake in his ex wife's house 30 years after the divorce. Have you seen any paperwork confirming this or spoken to your nan about it?

Jojo_the_Tightfisted

If he didn't want to take steps to ensure the interest in the house was passed on, then I'm afraid that's his wishes.

He had the chance to make a will - was specifically encouraged to - but chose to not do it.


I'm sorry for your family's impending loss and can only suggest that you keep this subject quiet, as it really isn't going to help matters when they are grieving.

tanith

Your Grandad knew what would happen if he chose not to make a will and was content with his decision so whatever happens will be what he chose.. I can't see that anyone can have a problem with that.. whether his share of the house goes to his ex-wife or his children its how he wanted it.

Nine_Lives

Thanks for the replies.

As for why would it go to my nan - maybe i've misunderstood the flow chart process then. I just thought it would. I know it depends on how the house is/was owned & what the divorce paperwork states. None of us know this. I only know what my granddad told my mum - that he has a share in the house.

Jojo - i know what you're saying. He was going to make it (apparently) but when he got the bad news he was hit for 6 & wasn't interested in anything according to my mum & became right depressed. Personally i'd put things into place that as much was organised as possible, but not everyone is like that & i can't comment how that sort of news could affect an individual.

I know what you're saying with your final comment. I'm only looking into it myself, as i can see what will happen. My mums side of the family are drama queens anyway, they love a good squabble, whereas my dads side just got on with things & didn't like silly squabbles at all. So i can see potential big fall outs over this. I am staying out of it myself as i'm more like my dads side, but i was just looking into what the outcome could/would be by law.

Nine_Lives

tanith wrote: »

whatever happens will be what he chose.. I can't see that anyone can have a problem with that..

Let's be serious for a minute....

While i agree with you & i had this discussion with my dad before he died (that whatever the individual decides - that is THEIR wish & should be respected), the sorry fact is that people up & down the country DO !!!!! and moan about their loved ones final wishes & challenge them because they're selfish (or whatever other reason).

So while i do agree that wishes should be respected, the sorry fact is that they're often not.

One example is, my dad was sponsoring a child from asia at £20 per month. He wanted this to continue until the child was 18 (which is another 5 or so years). The household is currently spending more than is coming in, so things need to be reorganized. We can't really afford the money going out at the moment, so some may have not bothered with this, but it was in my dads final wishes - so it's only right it gets carried out.

NAR

K_P83 wrote: »

My granddad (when he was ok with speaking about wills) said he had a claim/share in the house that my nan & her fella live in & that he'd leave this split between his remaining kids

The bit in red is what you or your mum and siblings need to establish. Is his name on the deeds? Did he think that if she died she would will her share to their children? (my guess)
Is the house that nan lives in the former matrimonial home of your grandad? Unless his name is on the deeds of their house it is extremely unlikely that your mum or siblings should have any expectation of a share from that direction. If so then the divorce/financial consent order papers would need to be examined to see if mention is made of the house.

Bit more research required on your part I'm afraid.

DylanO

You can easily find out if the house in question is in your father's name by checking the registry.

Quite what you expect from anyone else without knowing that I don't know.