Signing Over Home to Children

zygurat789

Trebor16 wrote: »

Of course it's a deliberate act but the question remains - is it deprivation? They can re-interpret the law as much as they like but it won't change the law. The local authorities seem to think they are above the law and such behaviour by them amounts to bullying and harassment, nothing more.

The question that has to be answered is "what is the reason for the drawing up of a trust or other manoeuvre".
The law is always being re-interpreted, not by local authorities but by lawyers and, yes, this is changing the meaning. Whether it is changing the meaning to or from the intentiion of the original drafters of the law is a matter of opinion which can be tested in open court, if you have the cash.
I tend to think that the local authorities consider themselves acting within the law as they understand it and they are, after all, only acting in the best interests of the majority of ratepayers.

zygurat789

HotChoc wrote: »

My Mum wants to sign over her house to me, I will then pay off the remaining mortgage, and refurbish the house, she will then stay in the home. Would my brother (who has nothing to do with the family) be able to make a claim against the house, when she dies? If so, how do I make sure this doesn't happen and if I can't how can I ensure that what I have spent on the home, which will be considerable, is paid back to me first. The home and contents are below IHT threshold. I would appreciate any help.

So back to the original question.

Mum makes a will leaving house to OP.
OP registers a charge on the property so that when it is sold all monies spent on it are recouped. The only problem is if the mortgage is one of those where it increases over time and may be greater than the value of the house less the considerable expenditure anticipated.

Errata

zygurat789 wrote: »

The question that has to be answered is "what is the reason for the drawing up of a trust or other manoeuvre".
The law is always being re-interpreted, not by local authorities but by lawyers and, yes, this is changing the meaning. Whether it is changing the meaning to or from the intentiion of the original drafters of the law is a matter of opinion which can be tested in open court, if you have the cash.
I tend to think that the local authorities consider themselves acting within the law as they understand it and they are, after all, only acting in the best interests of the majority of ratepayers.

Is the bottom line that when someone signs their house over to someone else the clear intention is to prevent any other 'someones' getting their hands on the asset?

zygurat789

Errata wrote: »

Is the bottom line that when someone signs their house over to someone else the clear intention is to prevent any other 'someones' getting their hands on the asset?

So the reason is.....?

Trebor16

zygurat789 wrote: »

The question that has to be answered is "what is the reason for the drawing up of a trust or other manoeuvre".
The law is always being re-interpreted, not by local authorities but by lawyers and, yes, this is changing the meaning. Whether it is changing the meaning to or from the intentiion of the original drafters of the law is a matter of opinion which can be tested in open court, if you have the cash.
I tend to think that the local authorities consider themselves acting within the law as they understand it and they are, after all, only acting in the best interests of the majority of ratepayers.

It is the local authorities who are instructing the lawyers to try and re-interpret the law. Why would a lawyer take a look at it without having received instructions to do so?

My experience of local authorities is that in many instances they are anything but law abiding. They have hoodwinked thousands of families over the years about who is responsible for funding care homes, and the odious top up scams they have conned family members into paying extra when the LA have a legal responsibility to pay.

I would have a lot more sympathy for LA's if they had acted in a fair way, but they have taken advantage of families with dubious practices for decades now. To say they are acting in the best interests of council tax payers is nonsensical.

Trebor16

Errata wrote: »

Is the bottom line that when someone signs their house over to someone else the clear intention is to prevent any other 'someones' getting their hands on the asset?

And if a person want so sign an asset over to someone when they are enjoying good health why shouldn't they? It is their asset after all.

scotsbob

Savvy_Sue wrote: »

We may have lost the OP, however ...

I'm not surprised. The OP asked three questions but posters are offering gratuitous advice and ignoring the questions.

Hotchoc, it depends which part of the UK you live in. If, like me, you are in Scotland then your brother can't be written out of a will, he is legally entitled to one third.
If you are in another part of the UK that may be different.

There are a number of ways you can ensure you are not out of pocket for improvements etc. The obvious one is to have a loan purely on paper.

You will get better practical advice from a Citizens Advice Bureau or law centre than you will on this forum and there will be no charge. Good luck to you.

dzug1

zygurat789 wrote: »

So back to the original question.

Mum makes a will leaving house to OP.
OP registers a charge on the property so that when it is sold all monies spent on it are recouped. The only problem is if the mortgage is one of those where it increases over time and may be greater than the value of the house less the considerable expenditure anticipated.

I didn't think you could register a charge against a property when no debt exists

linnett

I know someone who did exactly this and now his mother has died he will be liable for a lot more tax than he would have been if they had left the house in mother's name.

The transfer was done many, many years ago.

zygurat789

dzug1 wrote: »

I didn't think you could register a charge against a property when no debt exists

The charge is for the debt incurred to the OP by his Mum for the paying off of the mortgage on her house and the work done on her house.