Responsible for bills brother in parents house

Glosbod

My brother is living with my parents. He is nearly 40.
He does not work or claim benefits and is basically living off parents.
I own my own home. Well just recently got a mortgage with my boyfriend.
Got POA along with my brother for both parents should anything happen and parents have stated that the house would be left to both of us.
My worry is come the time both our parents are no longer around, seems like my brother will never leave and will not sort out bills.
If he is the only one living there, will bill payments be left to him to pile up as he is not working or would I be expected to pay even though I dont live there?
The mortgage is paid of so would just be running costs.
Dont know how I would afford to pay for brother to live there and pay to live in my own home.

Keep_pedalling

Unless the will states that your brother has a lifetime interest then you can insist that the house is sold and the proceeds split between you.

Yorkshireman99

Glosbod wrote: »

My brother is living with my parents. He is nearly 40.
He does not work or claim benefits and is basically living off parents.
I own my own home. Well just recently got a mortgage with my boyfriend.
Got POA along with my brother for both parents should anything happen and parents have stated that the house would be left to both of us.
My worry is come the time both our parents are no longer around, seems like my brother will never leave and will not sort out bills.
If he is the only one living there, will bill payments be left to him to pile up as he is not working or would I be expected to pay even though I dont live there?
The mortgage is paid of so would just be running costs.
Dont know how I would afford to pay for brother to live there and pay to live in my own home.

It will depend on the exact wording of the will. Sorry to be downbeat but I can see you having to eventually force a sale. As joint owner you could be liable for the council tax but AFAIK not any others.

Keep_pedalling

Has your brother ever had a job?

Jeanie_84

As your parents are both living it would advisable to discuss your concerns as a family.

I don't know your brothers situation but on the surely it would also be in his interest to think about the potential situation he could find himself in. So to avoid any future issues with your brother than now is an opportunity to secure both your futures.

It would cost you to force a sale.

Sea_Shell

Jeanie_84 wrote: »

As your parents are both living it would advisable to discuss your concerns as a family.

I don't know your brothers situation but on the surely it would also be in his interest to think about the potential situation he could find himself in. So to avoid any future issues with your brother than now is an opportunity to secure both your futures.

It would cost you to force a sale.

The worry there is that if you really spell it out in black & white to your Mum & Dad what might happen...they may decide to leave the house 100% to your Brother, because he NEEDS it!!!!

DairyQueen

The hierarchy of council tax responsibility:

"There is a strict hierarchy of who is responsible for paying the Council Tax on a chargeable dwelling (property). The person responsible for the Council Tax on a property will be the person who comes first on the following list:
a resident of the property who has a freehold interest in the whole or any part of it
a resident of the property who has a leasehold interest in the whole or part of it which is not inferior to another such resident leaseholder's interest
a resident who is a statutory or secure tenant of the whole or any part of the property
a resident who has a contractual license to occupy the whole or any part of the property
a resident of the property
the owner of the property".

This suggests that your brother, assuming he remains resident, would be first on the list and would carry the entire responsibility.

If your brother refused to insure the property, or maintain it, then you may consider it worthwhile protecting your asset and paying the building insurance and maintenance costs, regardless of his responsibility to pay.

All utilities are his legal responsibility whilst he is resident.

The difficulty isn't simply the legal position but the emotional pressure of dealing with a sibling who is behaving unfairly, feels entitled, or is unreasonably 'needy'.

By enabling his behaviour your parents are not protecting or helping your brother. They are encouraging his dependence (at the expense of his wellbeing) and creating a legacy that could disrupt the relationship between you and your brother.

Having said that, the status quo could change. One/both parents may require nursing care. They may wish to move. They may wish to release house equity. All kinds of things could happen.

CIS

If the parents were to die then the brother would be liable for the council tax charge as he is resident in the property.

elsien

There is also the possibility that if both your parents need care in later life then the house would be considered an asset that would be used to pay for this. In which case it may have to be rented out or sold anyway.

Mojisola

Glosbod wrote: »

My brother is living with my parents. He is nearly 40.

He does not work or claim benefits and is basically living off parents.

Unless they are paying voluntary NI contributions for him, he won't get a State Pension.

Are your parents expecting you to finance your brother's later years?

arielsmelody

Are your parents both in good health physically and mentally? While they are capable of making their own decisions, there is no problem with them supporting your brother by letting him live in their house rent free and paying all his bills. The problem will be in the future if they lose capacity and you have to use the POA to look after their finances. At that point, you have to make decisions in THEIR best interests, not your brothers - and obviously letting him live off their money is not in their best interests! And if it comes to the point where the house needs to be sold to pay for care home fees, unless your brother is over 60 (or the rules have changed by then), you might be looking at a situation where he needs to be evicted but has no savings or income of his own. Potentially a huge can of worms.