Where to get advice

monkeyshavingexpert123

Hi
please could you advise me where to get advice - I have inherited property + would like advice on the implications of putting a percentage of it into a family member's name
would it be best to go to an IFA, a tax adviser or conveyencing solicitor?

(I cant get thru to CAB)
Iv put this in tax thread as i guess the implications are mainly tax-related
thank you
monkeyS

CLAPTON

depends upon the circumstances

monkeyshavingexpert123

Can you refer me to any information on which type of adviser for which set of circumstances?

John_Pierpoint

If the death is within the last 24 months, look into the possibility of making a deed of family arrangement/deed of variation - then you will have effectively changed the will that left the real estate to you and avoided all the possible hassle of CGT and IHT due to your (brief?) benefit from the property. Read up all about it or see a good solicitor who can advise about IHT/CGT/Income tax, as this action could have different effects on all three.

It is "polite" to discuss your intentions with the executor, in case this trick has been pulled already; you are only meant to do it once per estate.

Expect the solicitor to charge something in the range £250 - £1,000 for doing the job.

Has legal ownership already been transferred into your name at the Land Registry.?

monkeyshavingexpert123

Thanks, yes would be within 24mo

Savvy_Sue

It may be relevant to know which family member they are, and are they an adult? I don't think you can put property into the name of a minor, so you'd be looking at a trust.

Your age and state of health may also be relevant, as would your other financial means.

I agree with John that a good (probably STEP) solicitor would be a good starting point, but they're likely to concentrate on the IHT / CGT liabilities: you may have other assets which mean that more general advice would be worthwhile.

BTW, I don't think CAB will be of much use.

manzanilla

Iv put this in tax thread as i guess the implications are mainly tax-related

Tax is important - but without knowing the situations of you and the other person it's impossible for us to say anything sensible...

Who will live in this property? If it is rented out, who will get the rent and pay for any upkeep?

And there are a lot of non tax implications. Why would you only want to give a % of it away? What happens if you die? If the other person does? If one of you gets divorced? Or goes bankrupt? What if they want to sell and you don't, or vice versa?

What you want to do is hardly ever a simple way forward. It may be the best for you, but my starting point is to suggest that it's usually good for people's affairs to not be linked, unless they are couples. Why not sell the property and split the proceeds?

monkeyshavingexpert123

Thanks for the answers - the who what + why of the circs isn't relevant here as all I was asking for is what type of adviser to go to, so I could thrash out all the implications, tax/other, with them
John, your mention of deed was v helpful and put me on the right track
now to find out how to identify a 'good' solicitor!
TY

CLAPTON

many people find that solitors answer the question that is asked

John_Pierpoint

It depends on what you mean by "good".
It is a bit like choosing a doctor; a lot of people are really looking for a "sympathetic" doctor; I am looking for technical accuracy, street wide realism at a price I can afford.

Finding this combination is difficult and the balance of the three factors varies depending on the problem being "solved".

I am also the "annoying" type of client who will do his own research and expect to be advised on not just what to do, but why and how that decision has been reached.
I find that some "professionals", usually the weaker ones, subscribe to the "why would you want a dog and then try to bark your self".

I have twice found myself in 45 years with a problem where I was out of my depth and under pressure to make a prompt decision.

One was an agricultural succession issue. The amount of special legislation, made for those with rolling acres, makes that area of tax and land law a pit of snakes.

The other was the situation of my widow mother living in a valuable house and facing the issue of 24/7 care.

In both cases I happened to be listening to BBC advice programmes in these areas. Inevitably one of the "advisers" was from a firm of solicitors, so I got in touch.

In both cases I found myself in provincial cities and the advice was good, though more expensive than from a high street solicitor.

Were the same situations to repeat themselves today, my mother's situation could be handled at least in the first instance, on a forum like this.

I think I would have to repeat the solicitor method for the agricultural situation, though the Country Land and Business association might be a first port of call?

Which brings me to the 4th impossible requirement - as well as the joke about a one armed solicitor, I need one who stays on the peak of his ability and does not grow old and retire.

Good luck.