Selling house around probate question

DVardysShadow

dobbollah wrote: »

even if the will clearly states she passes her part of the property to me and my sister?? (it doesnt worry me as I wont be benefitting it will be my sister who is keen to take her cut)

If it was held Joint Tenants, your father has rights which the will cannot override

dobbollah wrote: »

Annisele, whats going to be the easiest way to find this out, contact the bank to view the deeds, or would a clause in the will point this out....(if its there)

or do I need to contact the land registry..?

The will will tell you nothing about whether the house is tenants in common or joint tenants. It is all down to the deeds

dobbollah

Great thanks for all the advice its most welcome. So just to make sure I full understand.

If the deeds of the house say the house is held by my mum/dad as joint tenants, then the will matters not and my father becomes the sole owner.

If it was tenants in common, then it goes through probate and is split up into percentages.....

Assuming thats right........if its tenants in common, my dad just becomes sole owner and is free to sell the house with no probate requirement....?

G_M

dobbollah wrote: »

Annisele, whats going to be the easiest way to find this out, contact the bank to view the deeds, or would a clause in the will point this out....(if its there)

or do I need to contact the land registry..?

Spend £4 to download the Title from the Land Registry here.

dobbollah

G_M wrote: »

Spend £4 to download the Title from the Land Registry here.

and the title will hold the relevant info...?

dobbollah

ie - if the property/land is held as joint tenants or tenants in common

hcb42

spend the £4, but I would be surprised if it wasnt Joint Tenants, that normally is the way with marriage. (especially 36 years ago....)

dobbollah

great thanks, i would have already but the service isnt available until 7am

But just seeking clarification, if its joint tenancy - my dad owns the house 100%.

If this is the case can he sell without probate..?

armour

Sorry for your loss - my mum died recently too.
If held as joint tenants - Dad inherits mum's half by survivorship.
To sell he would need to show full ownership via deeds & mum's death cert. No probate required.
If it was a joint tenancy & the will writers allowed the insertion of such a (useless & potentially troublesome) clause, then they didn't know what they were doing.

Mojisola

armour wrote: »

If held as joint tenants - Dad inherits mum's half by survivorship.

If the property was owned as joint tenants, both of them owned all of it, not half each. That's why when one dies, the other still owns all the property and it isn't possible for any of it to be left in a will.

Mojisola

armour wrote: »

If it was a joint tenancy & the will writers allowed the insertion of such a (useless & potentially troublesome) clause, then they didn't know what they were doing.

It is sometimes advised that each of the couple leaves their share of the family home to the children in order to protect that capital from being paid out for residential care for the survivor, if that becomes necessary.

If such a clause is included without checking that the property is owned as tenants in common or arranging the severance of a joint tenancy, the will writers haven't done a good job.

In a well-written will, there will be a clause that gives the surviving spouse a life interest in the other half of the property and also the ability to move house without having to pay off the children. They will usually only get their hands on their inheritance after the second death.