Leaving house to kids

MaggieAnne

Not sure this is the right forum but my husband is terminally ill. If he left his half of our house to our 2 daughters, and then I signed over my half to them and brought a small flat for myself with savings , would this be allowed or not. Who should we go to for advice on this. Thanks

p00hsticks

Sorry to hear of your husbands illness.

Allowed by whom ?

There are a number of aspects to your proposal that need to be considered.

There could be consequences of what you are planning if you or your daughters are claiming means tested benefits or care or may be in the future.

And if your daughters aren't living in the property, there could be extra costs for them if and when they come to sel lthe house (capital gains tax) or buy a property of their own (additional stamp duty).

MaggieAnne

I hadn't thought of the capital gains implications. Presumably it would be on any increase in value from when they inherit/receive the property, as they would not be living there. Thanks for you reply.

Mojisola

MaggieAnne wrote: »

I hadn't thought of the capital gains implications. Presumably it would be on any increase in value from when they inherit/receive the property, as they would not be living there.

It would make sense for them to sell the property as soon as you give them your share. It's unlikely that they would then have to pay any CGT.

Owning a property with someone else often leads to problems and renting out a property that you have an emotional attachment to can also be difficult.

Savvy_Sue

This must be a very difficult time for you. I don't know what support you are getting, but there may be someone to talk to about future plans if, for example, you are using the local hospice service (even if he's not stayed there). Alternatively AgeUK have useful information.

If you buy a small flat with your savings, will you definitely have enough to live on for the rest of your life? What if you too become ill and need to pay for extra help? What if you need residential care? There are two parts to these questions: one is that personally I'd prefer to be able to choose what help I have and where I live, and that means paying for it. The other is that if you can't afford to pay for help or residential care, the local authority may call what you have done 'deprivation of assets'.

Far better to write good wills which minimise Inheritance Tax (if due), and hang onto your money, ready for your own rainy day.

Keep_pedalling

It is allowed but I would not advise it, especially if buying the flat used all your savings up, leaving you cash poor.

Do your children want the hassle of being landlords?

troubleinparadise

Can you really afford to give away your house to your children?

It is a very large gift to make when you hopefully have a good number of years ahead of you, and would no doubt like to have a reasonable standard of living yourself.

Take advice on what you are hoping to achieve as you haven't said in your post what your aim is, and several other posters have pointed out some pitfalls in the plan.

missile

Why do you want the expense & hassle to transfer ownership?

Keep it simple. Downsize and if after expenses there is any profit you could gift some or all to your kids.

pearl123

MaggieAnne wrote: »

Not sure this is the right forum but my husband is terminally ill. If he left his half of our house to our 2 daughters, and then I signed over my half to them and brought a small flat for myself with savings , would this be allowed or not. Who should we go to for advice on this. Thanks

Would it perhaps come under depreciation of assets should you ever need to go into a home?
I think it's worth speak to the CAB in the first instance and then perhaps a free half an hour with a solicitor.

Mojisola

MaggieAnne wrote: »

my husband is terminally ill. If he left his half of our house to our 2 daughters, and then I signed over my half to them and brought a small flat for myself with savings , would this be allowed or not.

Why would you want to give away all your assets while you are alive?

If you want your daughters to benefit from their father's legacy, sell the house and downsize using your half of the value of the house and keep the rest of your money in savings so that you can live comfortably.

If your daughters are good people, they wouldn't want to take your share of the house if it meant that you would have to penny-pinch for the rest of your life.