Care costs

Savvy_Sue

It's not difficult to do if Dad retains capacity, but I think it's the kind of thing you'd be well advised to used a solicitor for. Get a quote as it really shouldn't be expensive.

Do their wills accurately reflect what they want to happen on the first death? We write our wills making various assumptions which don't always pan out as we anticipated.

anexuser

Savvy_Sue wrote: »

It's not difficult to do if Dad retains capacity, but I think it's the kind of thing you'd be well advised to used a solicitor for. Get a quote as it really shouldn't be expensive.

Do their wills accurately reflect what they want to happen on the first death? We write our wills making various assumptions which don't always pan out as we anticipated.

Yes, my step Dad has full capacity, but reading the advice earlier I believe he should probably not be a party to any change of ownership type as deprivation of assets could then be argued.

I have not seen the wills, but have been told by my Mum that they each leave their share of the house to me & my sister, with the proviso that the surviving spouse has the right to live there. Obviously these were drawn up well before my step Dad moved into the care home.

As I have said, I have not actually seen the wills and so don't know for sure what they say. I do, however, now know that the house is held as joint tenants so the will probably can't work as they intended.

Mojisola

anexuser wrote: »

I have not seen the wills, but have been told by my Mum that they each leave their share of the house to me & my sister, with the proviso that the surviving spouse has the right to live there.

This clause could only come into effect if they were already tenants in common.

If a couple are joint tenants, they both own all the house so they can't leave their 'share' to anyone - the survivor automatically owns all the house.

securityguy

anexuser wrote: »

I have not seen the wills, but have been told by my Mum that they each leave their share of the house to me & my sister, with the proviso that the surviving spouse has the right to live there. Obviously these were drawn up well before my step Dad moved into the care home..

As Mojusola says, that implies it's tenants in common, not joint tenants: there are no "shares" in the case of a joint tenancy and the house isn't affected by the will: after the death of one party, the other owns the house absolutely without it passing through the estate, whatever the will says.

anexuser

Thanks for your replies.
I had assumed this was the case, which is why I said that the will probably can't work as intended.

It looks like the only option is for my Mum to break the joint tenancy, but how is this done exactly?

Thanks again to everyone who has helped so far.

TBagpuss

anexuser wrote: »

Thanks everyone for your replies and your best wishes.
I thought I had asked a relatively straightforward question - little did I know how complicated it really is!

It appears from the details obtained from LR that the house is held as joint tenants.
I am tempted to suggest to Mum that she severs the joint tenancy and as TBagpuss says if it is later decided that this is depravation of assets then so be it - nobody is any worse off.

If this is what we decide, how easy is it to do and how long does it take?

It's very easy. Your mum needs to give writen notice and serve that on dad. Theseverance takes efect as soon as it is served. It's common practice to ask hi to sign and return one copy of the notice of evidence it has been served but not absolutely essential.

There is a sample wording here http://www.landregistryservices.com/samples/england_and_wales/eng_notice_of_severance.pdf it is not necessary to put %'s in, if you don't there is a presumption of a 50/50 split

Mojisola

anexuser wrote: »

anexuser wrote: »

As I have said, I have not actually seen the wills and so don't know for sure what they say. I do, however, now know that the house is held as joint tenants so the will probably can't work as they intended.

If possible, have a look at the wills. If the will writer has made such a basic mistake as this, it would be worth checking that the rest of it will work as your parents intended.

anexuser

Another little 'problem' as mentioned earlier.

My Mum is named on the Land Registry by her old surname i.e her 1st husband (my late Dad's) name.

Is this going to be a issue?

Manxman_in_exile

Re post #28 from Mojisola.


Isn't it more likely that mum misunderstands the nature of her co-ownership with step-dad? Lots of joint tenants talk about their "share" of a property as if they were tenants in common, not appreciating that they each already own 100% of it.


But agree that OP really needs to see and understand the contents of each will. Are there any family reasons which make this difficult?

anexuser

Manxman_in_exile wrote: »

Re post #28 from Mojisola.


Isn't it more likely that mum misunderstands the nature of her co-ownership with step-dad? Lots of joint tenants talk about their "share" of a property as if they were tenants in common, not appreciating that they each already own 100% of it.


But agree that OP really needs to see and understand the contents of each will. Are there any family reasons which make this difficult?

I agree, she may well not quite understand - however, I remember about 10 years ago when they made the wills Mum distinctly said that her share of the house was left to me and my sister, and that the rest of the house would follow suit when step Dad passed away - or vice -versa if he were to pass away 1st.

No, there is nothing to stop us seeing the wills - we are a very close family - however they are lodged with the solicitor so not immediate.