Rights of Residence

TexasChainstoreMascara

My father has bought a new house with his new partner, he is downsizing to reduce mortgage costs and free up cash. The small mortgage will be in his name alone, because his new partner (who is very questionable) has previously declared bankrupt, has no employment/income etc.

I am thinking about this from an inheritance point of view. Should anything happen to my father (either before or after the mortgage is paid off) where do my siblings and I stand?

What rights does the partner have, having lived there since purchase, whilst not being on the mortgage? (Not sure about deeds). Should the unthinkable happen it would be our wish to get them out of the house, but is this legal?

Also, she has her own children. And with the situation as it is- as far as we are concerned the house is owned entirely by our Father- we would not be happy about them also having claim to part or a cut of the property. Would this have to be specified in a will or life insurance policy? Also, if she was to remain in there after anything happened to my Father, could they somehow get to inherit the property in its entirety when she eventually dies?

It's not really a conversation I want to have with my Father but I want to know the legalities and implications. Thanks in advance for any help.

G_M

If she is not on the mortgage she is almost certainly not on the Deeds.

Has you father made a will? Who are the Beneficiaries? What does he want to happen to the property in the event of his death?

A live-in partner can obtain rights to a property, particularly if they can demonstrate they contributed to the property in some way:
* down payment/deposit
* mortgage repayments
* maintenance/improvements to the property
etc

If she has children, under the age of 18, living there, that too might be a factor (I know little about this area of law).

If you can't/won't discuss this with your father, it might be worth a discussion with a solicitor.

Or post on the deaths and probate board here

TBagpuss

Key issues are (i) is she on the deeds, or is there any kind of declaration of trust or joint intention (ii) are they married (iii) is she financially dependent on him?

If the answer to all the qeustions is 'no' then she won't have any claim to the house. If the answer to one or more is esd, then she may have a claim.

It would be sensible for your dad to make a will, if he has not done so already. It may be wise for this to include provision either for a lump sum for her (enough to pay a deposit and 6 months rent, for instance, so that she would be able to move into new accommodation) and to potentially provide for her to remain in the property for a specific, limited period following his death (again, to allow her time to make other arrangements) That would make it more difficult for her to claim that he had not made reasonable provision for her, if she sought to make a claim on the estate if she claimed that she was financially dependent on him.


Her children could only inherit if the property was hers, not if she ended up having a right to occupy it.

Ideally, your dad should have some sort of cohabitation agreement and should make a will. However, bear in mind that as he is living with her, it may be that if he makes a will he does chose to leave the house, or other parts of his estate to her, and he is fully entitled to do so.

If he has no will at all, then as long as they are not married, she has no automatic right to any inheritance, but may be entitled to make a claim against the estate based on being dependent on him.