inherited mortgage help

georgeASDA

Hey

Last November, my father-in-law died, my wife and I were appointed as executors to deal with his estate.

His house still had a mortgage outstanding, so on contacting the bank we were told not to worry as we had a 6-month 'grace period'.

Naively I expected a followup letter, but none arrived.. so after about 7 months I contacted the bank who were extremely rude, and told me we'd be going to court unless I pay up immediately... so I asked how much the monthly repayments were and promptly sent a cheque.. and have been doing so every month (having to try three different branches of the bank as the first two didn't know how to accept this payment!)

Now almost a year on, we have yet to complete a sale of the house, and paying two mortgages isn't fun.. so I contacted the bank to ask what could be done.. a nice lady said we could change to interest only (this was never offered when we first queried it) and I also asked if these payments had been made as we received no statement or receipt... the only contact from the bank was the original letter following my father-in-law's death. She couldn't answer but then came out with the news that I should talk to collections, as I'm being charged each month as the mortgage is in arrears!! Surely I should have been told about this? how can they let the charges build up without letting us know? Yes I knew we'd be six months behind, but once we started making payments I was under the impression that we'd be ok...

Any ideas as to what we can do? the interest only option will bring the cost down (at a charge of £50).. but if we're being charged for arrears that means we'll have to clear six months of payments in a lump sum asap.. which we just aren't able to do right now.. could I change the mortgage to another lender without paying a fee? the value is ~£45,000 so I'm not sure if that's too small for some lenders? Also we're not sure if we'd meet the criteria as we already have a ~100% mortgage/plentiful outgoings etc.

I'd appreciate any advice!!

cheers,
Chris

consumersrevenge

Chris is selling the property out of the question, or perhaps renting it out? if you drop me a line in private message (not happy to put email addy on here, sorry guys) i will ask a friend of mine what the best option is, as he often sees this type of thing

consumersrevenge

chris, apologies i meant to say quick sale (e.g. cash) there are many firms buying property for cash now (in fact one i am trying to buy a property from does this)

dunstonh

and paying two mortgages isn't fun

Why are you paying the mortgage? It shouldnt come from your money.

Surely I should have been told about this? how can they let the charges build up without letting us know?

Do the bank know you have been appointed executors and have been given proof of that? If they havent had the documentation, then they shouldnt write to you.

Chris is selling the property out of the question, or perhaps renting it out?

Selling is the option unless it was in the will. Renting out is not really an option as the job of the executor is to disperse the assets in accordance with the will. Not to take on a liability in the form of a tenant which could affect the capital value of an asset that should be sold or passed on.

georgeASDA

thanks for the replies

consumersrevenge - i know it's like having your cake and eating it but we'd rather wait and get close to market value for the property.. we feel like we owe it to my father-in-law to hold onto the equity he built up.

dunstonh - they know we're executors.. and really everything is coming to us (my wife).. this is where I do get confused as who 'who pays' for the mortgage... we made an executors account but all we've used this for is a handful of rebates from e.g. council tax/phone bills etc. which has offset the final gas/electric bills ..it's not enough to cover the mortgage. like I say all they've told us that we have to pay or we'll have unpleasant people knocking on the door taking us to court!

Andy_L

Could you not move into your FILs house & sell the one your in (or is it miles away from where you live & work)

"we'd rather wait and get close to market value for the property"
and
"Now almost a year on, we have yet to complete a sale of the house"
suggests you are asking to much for the house (unless you've been faffed about by buyers) and might want to get the house revalued

georgeASDA

andy - ta for the reply.. his house is too far away for us to use. to me the house does seem comparably priced, it did take us a while to get it on the market tho after sorting out probate etc. so it's been up for around 2 months.

consumersrevenge

Hi Again

I understand wanting to get the best price for the property, I would probably have that opinion too. However, it is always a trade off between holding out for the deal, and accepting a lower offer but that will avoid any 'complications' which one may experience.

For example, I do know of a lady who sold a house for below market value (around 15% from what I recall) but her view was that it was best to move the house on, else it would stand vacant, possibly attracting bored youths etc, and loose money through neglect. Out of interest, where is the property and how much are you asing for it? I understand if you do not wish to answer.

dunstonh

You need to consider that you have had a years worth of mortgage payments which reduces the value in effect. Plus property prices could be on the turn with recent figures suggesting drops in many areas and seeing the length of time this has been up for sale, that suggests you are not in a hot area where you can get away selling above market price.

Gorgeous_George

I'd get it in to an auction as soon as possible. By all means have a reserve set, but you need to get rid of it. I know it is difficult but you need to remove sentiment from the house.

Best wishes

GG

georgeASDA

Thanks for the further replies.. yeah maybe we should look at lowering the price or some of the alternatives. I'm still not sure how the bank gets away with enforcing charges on us without notifying us first? Or are the charges against the mortgage holder - that would seem strange but I guess it's one way of getting around it.. of course they can't notify him, either.