Solved - Bankrupt but bequeathed share of property

dave3dtg

Hi

My Dad passed in April after I declared myself bankrupt with 20 years worth of debts totalling 65K.

In 2007 my parents had a weird will written up. In it it said that half of his half was to go to my Mum and the remaining half was to be split equally between me and my two brothers. 

So I'm bankrupt but have an 8.33% share in a property that could be worth 650K.

My Mum is a very frail 83 years.

Will the OR make her homeless?
Cheers

molerat

Not really too strange a will but if he had known your circumstances it may have been better not to have written it that way but that is now the way it is. The OR is not going to walk away from £54K but at the same time they won't be kicking your mum out.  Can your brothers afford to buy out your share to prevent a sale at a later date ?  The problem is, I assume, that you currently stand to inherit a larger portion of the house in, to be honest, maybe the not too distant future and at that stage the OR will stop playing nicely.

Mojisola

dave3dtg said:

In 2007 my parents had a weird will written up. In it it said that half of his half was to go to my Mum and the remaining half was to be split equally between me and my two brothers. 
So I'm bankrupt but have an 8.33% share in a property that could be worth 650K.
My Mum is a very frail 83 years.
Will the OR make her homeless?

It's not weird at all - it means that your mother will have assets to pay for residential care should she need it but that you three are guaranteed an inheritance when the house I'd eventually sold. 
If the will was written correctly, your mother will have a life interest in the property and you won't actually get your inheritance until your mother has no further use for the house. 

dave3dtg

molerat said:

Not really too strange a will but if he had known your circumstances it may have been better not to have written it that way but that is now the way it is. The OR is not going to walk away from £54K but at the same time they won't be kicking your mum out.  Can your brothers afford to buy out your share to prevent a sale at a later date ?  The problem is, I assume, that you currently stand to inherit a larger portion of the house in, to be honest, maybe the not too distant future and at that stage the OR will stop playing nicely.

Thank you.
If I had known I'd never have gone bankrupt. I had talked about it for a couple of years and they would've said noooooo don't.
Part of my problem is that at least one brother doesn't want me having anything I'm sure.
If my Mum passes before the end of my bankruptcy then yes the or will indeed have a nice pay day. However, I'm lead to believe that should she pass after then it won't be so good.
I've just found out that according to the land registry the property is in trust as of 2007 and no part or the whole property can be sold or used to raise equity without a court order. I've also discovered there's a trustee but have no clue who it is.
I've brought the deeds etc from the land registry.
It seems that after the initial shock and horror of my Dad's will , it transpires that only 75% can be used for any care costs and the 25% for my brother's and I is effectively ringfenced.
It also seems that the OR can't take the property.

dave3dtg

Mojisola said:

dave3dtg said:

In 2007 my parents had a weird will written up. In it it said that half of his half was to go to my Mum and the remaining half was to be split equally between me and my two brothers. 
So I'm bankrupt but have an 8.33% share in a property that could be worth 650K.
My Mum is a very frail 83 years.
Will the OR make her homeless?

It's not weird at all - it means that your mother will have assets to pay for residential care should she need it but that you three are guaranteed an inheritance when the house I'd eventually sold. 
If the will was written correctly, your mother will have a life interest in the property and you won't actually get your inheritance until your mother has no further use for the house. 

Thank you.

I guess my reply above covers what you have as well 😀

MalMonroe

Very sorry to hear about your Dad.

I also don't think it's a weird will at all. You may have shares in a property but it's all on paper right now and your Mum, frail though she may be, is still here. So at the moment it seems that you don't need to report anything to the OR. Nobody can make your Mum homeless because she owns a share of the home she lives in. And your debt isn't her debt so she doesn't have to worry about that.

When you actually become a recipient of your share, whatever and whenever that might be, will be the time to report it to the OR. 

molerat

Could it be argued that as op was already in debt when the trust was set up it was done to protect his inheritance from creditors so could be unwound.  Just throwing thoughts out there..

Minkym00

MalMonroe said:

Very sorry to hear about your Dad.

I also don't think it's a weird will at all. You may have shares in a property but it's all on paper right now and your Mum, frail though she may be, is still here. So at the moment it seems that you don't need to report anything to the OR. Nobody can make your Mum homeless because she owns a share of the home she lives in. And your debt isn't her debt so she doesn't have to worry about that.

When you actually become a recipient of your share, whatever and whenever that might be, will be the time to report it to the OR. 

This is incorrect and could leave you open to a (criminal) allegation of concealment of assets. It would be prudent to advise your OR straight away.

You became a beneficiary as soon as your dad passed away and, as it was within 12 months of your BO, it is “after acquired property” and forms part of your bankruptcy estate.  It can be years before a beneficiary actually sees any inheritance but you still need to declare it to the OR. In any case, even if you don’t, the executors have a legal duty to do so.

The OR will appoint an IP as your new trustee to look into this. With a trust involved it’s too complicated for an OR to manage. 

luvchocolate

Please take notice of Minkys reply...they know their stuff 

dave3dtg

luvchocolate said:

Please take notice of Minkys reply...they know their stuff 

I have...to the extent that taking an overdose seems like the best option for me to save my Mum from so much pain and anguish, to save my children from any further burdens I might inflict on them and to save my brother's from the burden that is me.
Minkys reply describes something so alien to this world. It describes something that is pure, unadulterated evil. To perform those actions and potentially  kill an old lady who's lived in her house for 58 years for 65K is truelly despicable. To have a claim on just 8.33% and use it to cause so much pain is abhorant. They can't even let her live out her life with dignity. It's not even her debt. I've never quite understood what drives people to suicide...I do now.

DCFC79

dave3dtg said:

luvchocolate said:

Please take notice of Minkys reply...they know their stuff 

I have...to the extent that taking an overdose seems like the best option for me to save my Mum from so much pain and anguish, to save my children from any further burdens I might inflict on them and to save my brother's from the burden that is me.
Minkys reply describes something so alien to this world. It describes something that is pure, unadulterated evil. To perform those actions and potentially  kill an old lady who's lived in her house for 58 years for 65K is truelly despicable. To have a claim on just 8.33% and use it to cause so much pain is abhorant. They can't even let her live out her life with dignity. It's not even her debt. I've never quite understood what drives people to suicide...I do now.

Dont take that drastic action, you have children, a parent.
Ring 1 of the relevant charities and speak to them.