Adding son's name on title register

Cheeky_Monkey

atiq wrote: »

Interesting replies so far! Intention was that if both our names appear on the Register, the property can get passed on to him without too many issues in case of death. No money is involved. Would I need a solicitor and just in case there is a problem in the future, is the process reversible, like one of the post suggested above, can I take his name off two years down the line
Thx

Seeing as the simplest, quickest way to ensure that is to write a Will leaving it to him, I suspect that is not your real motive

teddysmum

If the intention is to reduce assets so that any elderly care is free,as your son is not a partner over 60 or a dependant, your half will be considered as an asset and any amount over the allowance of £23250 would be owed to the council.


People used to share ownership of properties, because it was once passed about ,even by some people in the legal profession, that councils would not take the trouble of contesting ownership of a shared property. However, councils are facing more claims, need more money and are well aware of people's intentions,so are more likely to act nowadays.

Engineer87

Why not just use a will?

Consider what your sons financial status is? If he were to be overwhelmed by debt (his/his partners/his business partners?) Could 'your House' be repossed as a consequence? I would tread very carefully as situations change and your talking about (I hope) the long term here.

Engineer87

And as a second to that, if your son were to divorce (assuming he is in a marriage or civil partnership) could you end up loosing assets as a consequence?

Engineer87

And as a second to that, if your son were to divorce (assuming he is in a marriage or civil partnership) could you end up loosing assets as a consequence?

Engineer87

And as a second to that, if your son were to divorce (assuming he is in a marriage or civil partnership) could you end up loosing assets as a consequence?

atiq

Thank you for so much input. In the absence of a will, the reasons I wanted to add my son's name were the following.:
(A) As I am in my late sixties, I wanted him to be the sole beneficiary (he is single atm) in case I Pre-decease him. Remember there is no mortgage involved.
(2) A few year down the line, (Whether I am alive or not), He could have some equity release to fund any investment plans etc he may have if he is ambitious.
One thing which I am not sure about is the Inheritence Tax in case I was to go before him?

macman

He won't necessarily be the sole beneficiary if you don't make a will, because under the laws of intestacy, any siblings will have an equal claim on the estate, which will include half the house.
Because we don't know anything about the potential value of your estate, we can't tell you if IHT is likely to be a factor. But, if it is, simply gifting half the house to him will not avoid your potential liability, as explained above.
It would be a lot simpler and cheaper just to make a will specifying what you actually want.

Mojisola

If you have one child and no spouse, your son will inherit everything from you whether you have a will or not.

Jenniefour

atiq wrote: »

(A) As I am in my late sixties, I wanted him to be the sole beneficiary (he is single atm) in case I Pre-decease him. Remember there is no mortgage involved.

That is very easily done by writing a will to that effect, as has been said earlier.

(2) A few year down the line, (Whether I am alive or not), He could have some equity release to fund any investment plans etc he may have if he is ambitious.

What you seem to be missing here is your interests. Assuming you are in good health now and managing fine but what if you need a bit more money in future e.g. to get in some paid for help. I don't think it's a good idea to close down the possibility of being able to consider some kind of equity release for yourself. Much as I dislike them and believe they should only be used as a last resort.

One thing which I am not sure about is the Inheritence Tax in case I was to go before him?

Unless you have a two million pound terraced house in London, or very substantial other assets then why worry about inheritance tax. If you do have a very substantial amount of wealth, well over the IHT allowance of £325k, then you need to be seeking advice from a solicitor to get proper planning advice and write a will.

Otherwise, if you are trying to avoid IHT on a less substantial estate and you sign over half your property to your son, you may well find yourself in difficulty later on as none of us can predict how our lives might change, especially health wise, as we get older. Essentially giving away resources that we might need later on in life is not wise. And, as others have said, there are other possible potential serious repercussions should something untoward happen in your son's life which will then have a negative impact on you.

Addition: as per Martindow, if you're a widower then IHT allowance is £650k.