Probate timescale

parcival

I completed all of the inheritance tax stuff online on 1st June - No IHT to pay.  Then went on and completed an on-line probate application.  Sent the cover sheet and will on 1st June by Special Delivery. Just had email to say the Grant is approved and in the post. My mothers estate is straightforward, just a flat to sell plus 4 savings accounts but very impressed.

Chloe901

This gives me hope! We're currently in the process of buying a probate property and it seems that probate wasn't applied for until some time after our offer was submitted (March) and the ball rolling. It's not been granted yet, so we continue to wait. Now, I have no idea whether the estate in question is complex or what the IHT situation is, but it's nice to see that cases are being dealt with and at least some are being turned around quickly. Thank you for sharing!

BooJewels

That gives me hope too.  Just sent all my finished and signed forms to my sister to sign and she needs to collect the Will from the deceased's solicitor and send it all off.  It's a weight off my mind to get my bit of it done, then will be once it's sent off in a few days and hope it doesn't take too long.  Nothing's waiting on it really though as there's not much money (which will be used to fuel and insure the house) and a house that's going to need a lot of clearing to even consider selling.  As beneficiaries we'll not actually take anything out until the end of the process.

Good luck getting your house @Chloe901 - makes you wonder why they've marketed the property before having Probate at least in progress - that's the only reason we've dashed to do it, so it won't hold anything up - should we get an approach before we're actively selling.  Already had a very cheeky developer offer, so it's vaguely possible.

CLJP72

We are buying a probate property. Offer accepted in January, probate sent of early February and still waiting. We were initially told 8-12 weeks, even taking COVID into account it's way overdue. All we are getting is that HMRC and probate courts are suffering staff shortages. No choice but to have to wait, we've got trades on standby as it needs a rewire, wall ties and other work. We have been looking in case anything else came up but nothing on the market fits our criteria.

ameliarate

When my sister died we used solicitors for the probate because her will was slightly more Complex  than normal because there was a discretionary trust involved, it took over a year and cost thousands of pounds. My fathers Will was straight forward and we had probate and IHT done and sorted within 3 months and cost very little. A lesson to be learned. I will never again use solicitors. 

AnotherJoe

Isnt one lesson not to use discretionary trusts??

A few recent posters with simple wills / estates DIYing have reported probate being completed within 2 or 3 weeks.

Once a solicitor is involved its inevitable the timescale will go to months. Because logistics,  because they have other stuff to do than your will,  and also they will probably post a notice in the Gazette and wait for months for a response.

parcival

The actual Grant arrived in post today. That's 11 days from leaving here to being returned all done.........well impressed.

lisyloo

Thanks for letting us know.
we sent ours in the post, they quoted 8 weeks which I know doesn’t mean it will take 8 weeks but not to follow it up until then.

we could not do ours online as executor had pre-deceased