House has been transferred between generations 'informally' - next steps?

da_rule

As I see it there are 3 parties; grandmother, son and grandchildren.

Grandmother owned the house but moved out. Son moved in. Both are now dead. Son has children (the grandchildren).

Assuming that at some point there was a grandfather, the first thing to assess is whether grandmother actually, on grandfathers death, inherited the whole of the house and whether this was formalised (if it was needed to). If they owned the property as joint tenants then it would have automatically passed to the other co-owner. If they owned it as tenants in common then grandfathers share would pass according to his will or the rules of intestacy.

The first thing to establish therefore is whether grandmother actually owned, at the time of her death, the entirety of the property. If she didn’t, then grandfathers estate will also have to be administered. There is an added complication in that, many years ago there was a practice of property being purchased in the mans name only.

So, assuming grandmother does own the whole of the property, the next step is to look at her death. If she left a will then the property would be passed on in accordance with that. If not it would be passed on in accordance with the intestacy rules.

If the son was not an only child then under the intestacy rules the house would be split between him and his siblings. Likewise, if any will left the house to grandmothers children.

If the son inherits the house (or a share of it) his estate would then need to be administered, again, either in accordance with any will or the intestacy rules.

I would suggest that this is going to need professional unpicking as:
1) You are dealing with unregistered property which whilst that in of itself is not overly complex the added issues make it somewhat complex;
2) There are at least 2 estates to administer, perhaps more;
3) Historic valuations will be needed in order to apply for probate, as well as information on the assets each of the deceased persons held at their death;
4) Given point 3, the completion of historic inheritance tax paperwork and the application of historic exemptions and nil-rate bands will make things more complex.

Overall, I think this stands as a good example as to why people should:
1) Have clearly drafted, valid wills;
2) Ensure enough people know the location of said will;
3) Administer estates as soon as possible after someone passes.