Putting a charge on a property you are due to inherit a share of

debsa

Hi, I wondered if anyone can give me some advise please; My father died in 2018 and left a 50% share of his property to me and my brother, which will come to us once our stepmother either sells or passes away.(The other half to step brother & sister) Family relationship is good (at the moment) but should we (can we) consider putting a charge on the property  and can we do this without upsetting step mother! (in case step-mum meets someone else/ marries someone else or sells without telling us?) As far as I am aware, the property was in fathers name and his will states his wishes but not sure there is any other legal documentation needed.
Many thanks

lincroft1710

Would suggest you consult a solicitor as a charge is only usually put on a house to ensure a debt is repaid or similar.  If your father was married to your stepmother and they lived in the house together, I would also check if this meant she had an automatic share of the house.

gettingtheresometime

Can't you download a copy of the Land Registery title deeds to see who is the current registered owner? Who was the executor?
My FIL did something similar (his partner has the right to live in the property and on her death/decides she doesn't want to live there etc) a %age of the house goes to OH & his sister but at the moment it's in the name of a trust.

JGB1955

You can put a restriction on the property (Restriction by owner not living at property request: registration (RQ) - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk) and/or ask for a property alert (HM Land Registry - Property Alert).  Posting the question at Land Registry questions - Page 242 — MoneySavingExpert Forum should come up with a definitive answer.

debsa

Thank you all for your replies. I know the house is in my fathers name and his will says that the property will remain the home of my stepmother for the remainder of her life at which point the sale value of the house will be split four ways between us children (all in our 50's!) . I really just wanted to know if anything could change what was in the will... ie a change in stepmothers situation and if I (and the other family members) should be doing anything to protect our future inheritance.

TBagpuss

as JGB says, I think what you need is a restriction, not a charge. I think that there is a fairly standard one for this situation which basically says that a single owner can't sell except with a court order - assuming what your stepmother has is a life interest. Of course, if what actually happened was that he house was owned by them as joint tenants then it would have automatically passed to her and you'll only get a share if she leaves it to you in her will.

As a first step I'd suggest that you download a copy of the office copy entries from the land registry and check the wording of your dad's will, and then speak to a solicitor about entering a restriction, if appropriate.  depending on who dealt with your Dad's estate they may already have done it. 
If not, then as you are all on good terms, talk to her about doing it and explain that it makes things clearer when the time comes and ensures that her children and you are all protected. 

Land_Registry

I suspect you will find that the register refers to them both, unless updated since his death, and a form A restriction. The form A is usually applied for when such arrangements are made but it doesn’t have to be 
Whilst you can apply for a consent restriction you’d normally need your step mother’s consent. 

My advice would be to discuss what formal advice they were given at the time of making their wills for example and seeking legal advice to clarify what should legally happen when the stated events arise. You could also cover off what impact say one of the beneficiaries passing away too before step mother and what happens legally to their share? 

The form RQ restriction is one aimed at protecting an absent landlord/owner. That goes hand in hand with Property Alert. I don’t think the form RQ really applies here but it would be your step mother who’d apply for it. Property Alert is often used by ‘interested’ parties but it simply notifies you of a significant application. It doesn’t restrict step mother or give you any extra powers  

RetSol

 I really just wanted to know if anything could change what was in the will... ie a change in stepmothers situation and if I (and the other family members) should be doing anything to protect our future inheritance.

Hello, @debsa.  The will cannot be changed but you do need to take steps to ensure that the current owners of the property implement the will correctly when the time comes to sell the property.

If you have not already done so, obtain a copy of the will from the probate registry and obtain a copy of the land registry entry for the property from the land registry.

After your father's death, the property should have been transferred to trustees (they may be the same people as the executors of the will, but not necessarily).  The trustees should show up on the land registry entry as the current owners.  If no transfer was made, you will need to ask the executors to do it now. 

At the time of the transfer, a restriction should have been entered on the register to ensure that the trustees only sell the property in accordance with the will.  This ensures that your interest under the will is noted on the register.  It also protects your step mother and her interests under the will. 

MobileSaver

debsa said:

I know the house is in my fathers name and his will says that the property will remain the home of my stepmother for the remainder of her life

Have you seen a recent copy of the Land Registry title to be 100% certain the house is solely in your late father's name? If not then spending £3 now will give you certainty.

Secondly sign up to the free Land Registry property alert service which will let you know of any future changes to the property.

If the house is not registered in your stepmother's name then she will not be able to sell it without agreement from all the beneficiaries as per the will so you don't really have much to worry about (assuming you trust whoever the executors of your father's will are.)

Just as an aside, it may be worth quoting the exact wording of the relevant clauses in the will to be absolutely sure it does say what you think it says...

silvercar

what happens if step mother needs to go into care and decides to rent the house out to cover the care costs? 

MobileSaver

silvercar said:

what happens if step mother needs to go into care and decides to rent the house out to cover the care costs? 

This is an example of why the OP should confirm the exact wording of the will; a well-written bequest will only allow the step mother to have any rights to the property while she is in occupation. If that is the case here then the step mother would not have the authority to rent the property out.