Executor refusing reasonable offers

RAS

Worried840 wrote: »

The bills are being paid with the remainder of the money in the account which is now only a couple of hundred, the council tax kicks in this month and the house insurance is due for renewal. I am being told I need to pay a fifth of the bills when the money runs out however I can barely afford my own bills.

If the property is owned by the estate of Mum and Dad (which is must be if the executor has the final say in the sale), then you do NOT have to pay anythign towards the bills.

ALL bills are the responsibility of the estate and the executors are responsible for arranging their payment.

Worried840

I have been told that I have no choice but to pay and that if I dont I may be charged interest and then have the amount deducted from my share of the house. I have no choice as they will take the money off me either way.

nom_de_plume

If you don't pay then, yes, the costs must come from somewhere and this somewhere will eventually be from the estate and yes, if the executor has to borrow money there will be interest on the loan but that still doesn't mean you have no choice but to pay. The effect of paying bills and borrowing money will reduce the estate and therefore everyone's share, not just yours. Contributing now will mean the estate's value does not diminish but you are out of pocket so the result is still the same.
Refusing to chip in now, which is what RAS is saying above, may work in your favour by putting pressure on the executor to get the property sold sooner rather than later.

Mojisola

Worried840 wrote: »

The first offer we recieved was £3,000 less than the minimum she would accept - I should add that the sale of the house is being split 5 ways!

The bills are being paid with the remainder of the money in the account which is now only a couple of hundred, the council tax kicks in this month and the house insurance is due for renewal. I am being told I need to pay a fifth of the bills when the money runs out however I can barely afford my own bills.

Worried840 wrote: »

I have been told that I have no choice but to pay and that if I dont I may be charged interest and then have the amount deducted from my share of the house. I have no choice as they will take the money off me either way.

I don't think the executor has the right to insist on being paid by the beneficiaries or to charge you interest if you don't pay.

By refusing an offer of only £3k under the asking price, using up the spare capital and now starting to eat into the capital tied up in the house, the executor is not acting in the beneficiaries' best interests. You should look to getting her removed.

Worried840

What has been said is tht the beneficiaries have to pay out their own pocket, no borrowing money has bn mentioned. So the awkward executor wants to charge me interest because I cannot afford it and deduct the bill money with interest off my inheritance. I wld pay but I cant. I feel there is no end in sight.

Mojisola

Worried840 wrote: »

What has been said is tht the beneficiaries have to pay out their own pocket, no borrowing money has bn mentioned. So the awkward executor wants to charge me interest because I cannot afford it and deduct the bill money with interest off my inheritance. I wld pay but I cant. I feel there is no end in sight.

But none of the beneficiaries have to hand over money to the executor. She doesn't have the right to charge you interest!

She could hold off selling the house until all the money gained from it is "owed" in bills!

She has a legal duty to act in the beneficiaries' interest and she patently isn't now.

securityguy

The executor refusing to sell has told the second executor should he make any decisions without her she will take legal action against him. She made it clear from the beginning she did not want to sell the house so this may be a reason as to why she is reluctant.

That's not going to end well. Presumably, and a lawyer can advise, eventually an executor can be removed if they are manifestly not acting in the interests of the beneficiaries.

nom_de_plume

Interest charges may still come your way in a roundabout fashion if the executor has to borrow money to pay for the house's upkeep. This will all come out of the estate.

Mojisola

nom_de_plume wrote: »

Interest charges may still come your way in a roundabout fashion if the executor has to borrow money to pay for the house's upkeep. This will all come out of the estate.

The executor doesn't need to borrow money - they are getting offers on the house which she is refusing!

getmore4less

Mojisola wrote: »

The executor doesn't need to borrow money - they are getting offers on the house which she is refusing!

Which potentialy makes them personaly liable, but getting them to pay is another matter entirely.