House to be Held on Trust

sotonhill

Thank you all for your comments which have confirmed the need to seek professional advice and raised some questions to address.

I hope I didn't appear unhappy about the proportion of rent, it certainly wasn't my intention. As has already been pointed out the maintenance and building insurance costs need to be allowed for. I also recognize that it was my mother's wish that my brother be able to live in the house for the rest of his life, if he so desires, and I don't believe he had any undue influence on the writing of the will.

What was confusing me is the different types of trust and it appears I am going to be responsible for ensuring this is properly set up and taxes paid etc.

And yes it would have been helpful if my mum and the solicitor who wrote this will had discussed the options with us or at least explained how they saw the will as it is working.

Yorkshireman99

sotonhill wrote: »

Thank you all for your comments which have confirmed the need to seek professional advice and raised some questions to address.

I hope I didn't appear unhappy about the proportion of rent, it certainly wasn't my intention. As has already been pointed out the maintenance and building insurance costs need to be allowed for. I also recognize that it was my mother's wish that my brother be able to live in the house for the rest of his life, if he so desires, and I don't believe he had any undue influence on the writing of the will.

What was confusing me is the different types of trust and it appears I am going to be responsible for ensuring this is properly set up and taxes paid etc.

And yes it would have been helpful if my mum and the solicitor who wrote this will had discussed the options with us or at least explained how they saw the will as it is working.

As you are both executors you are both responsible for the property. Your brother needs to understand that and not just leave it to you. He also needs to undersatnd his rights and responsibilities regarding the property. From past expereince you need to document every thing and make sure he gets copies of everything. That way if there is a dispute you can produce a full paper trail. Don't fall into the trap of thinking you can just let things go without keeping your eye on things.

Land_Registry

I'm guessing the change of ownership and how to protect the trust/beneficial ownership on the land register are issues already covered. But just in case not, and the property is in England or Wales here's some basic details.

If the legal ownership has passed to the Property Trustees then it can be transferred by the executor(s), as named in the probate, to the beneficiaries. I'm guessing that's you and your brother transferring to the two if you by way of an Assent (AS1).

How the trust is then protected, inc the brother's right to live there, is where the legal advice comes in. the details of the trust are not something we register so they will remain private to you/your solicitor as appropriate.

I suspect you may look to register a Form A restriction which will indicate that a trust exists and restrict the surviving legal owner should one of you die. Understanding how it restricts is important as what happens to each of your shares in the beneficial ownership in the future/in your own wills/inheritance adds to the mix also

Our Practice Guide 24 on Private Trusts offers some guidance from a registration perspective. The key though is the wider legal advice and you each knowing and understanding its impact in any given future set of circumstances.