To Probate or Not to Probate.

DazzerB

My Mother in Law passed away two weeks ago aged 59, she and the Father in Law had made out their wills (mirrored wills), the mortgage had been payed off at the end of last year, they had a joint bank account, and she had no personal savings, shares etc.
Having told all the relevant people, banks etc, the solicitor dealing with the will has informed us that to proceed he will need £300 to cover costs.
Surely if there is no massive fortune to sort out as in this case, we don't need his help, the only problem i can see is getting her name taken off the land registry, as they were tenants in common, do we need to apply for probate to do this? or is the solicitor just covering himself? This is the first time we've had to deal with this, so your help or assistance would be greatfully recieved.

owsaboutthatthen

I'm a bit rusty on the law on this so would be grateful if anyone could correct me but I thought for estates under £5,000 probate need not be applied for, also won't a death certificate be sufficient for the Land Registry?

darich

Sorry to hear about your loss.

owsaboutthatthen wrote: »

I'm a bit rusty on the law on this so would be grateful if anyone could correct me but I thought for estates under £5,000 probate need not be applied for, also won't a death certificate be sufficient for the Land Registry?

I'm fairly sure the house would be worth more than £5,000 meaning the estate is worth more than £5,000.

Lawyers are expensive so it may be that a couple of letters and a few phone calls to sort things out could amount to £300.

consultant31

My Dad passed away a couple of weeks ago and he and Mum had mirror wills. Their house is paid for and there were only a couple of insurance policies and their bank accounts (one personal each and a joint one).

We have almost come to the end of all the legal hassle and have not employed the services of a solicitor at all. I got on to the insurance companies, sent a death certificate to each and they have been sorted out. The bank transferred all the bank accounts to Mum's name and no-one has informed us that anything else needs to be done.

We found that asking each person we came across (ie: the doctor, the Registrar, the bank mnager etc) what else we had to do set the ball rolling for the next stage. It's a terrible time but everyone we've come into contact with has been more than helpful.

Don't forget that your FIL should pay less council tax as a sole occupier and consider getting a water meter (if he doesn't already have one). These were a couple of things we never thought of, but do make a bit of a saving for the surviving partner.

DazzerB

Don't forget that your FIL should pay less council tax as a sole occupier and consider getting a water meter (if he doesn't already have one). These were a couple of things we never thought of, but do make a bit of a saving for the surviving partner.[/quote]

Thanks for that, we knew about the Council Tax, but thats a good idea about the water meter!
Will get onto the Land Registry on Monday to see what they say.
I will also ask the solicitor what he needs to do, as we've told all the people who need to know already. Will keep you posted on the outcome.
Once again thankyou for your help.

Errata

If the estate is as straightforward as you say, you an easily do it yourself. Have a read of this http://www.hmcourts-service.gov.uk/cms/wills.htm
it's the Probate Office website and tells you how to DIY. I'm presuming you are the executor.

Kaz2904

I am sorry for your loss.
A thing to consider about the water meter though (and I really don't want to sound insensitive) is that once it has been there for 12 months it is permanent and could affect the saleability of your FIL's home when he comes to sell it.