Death of vendor after sale agreed

Del65

We have recently had an agreed sale on a property, the vendors children have power of attorney, the vendor has just died (two weeks after sale agreed) and the house will be subject to probate; does anyone know for sure if this likely to hold up the sale progressing?, Not had this situation crop up before and as its early days on the sale we feel we may be better to pull out of sale and look elsewhere. Any help gratefully received on this.

Flugelhorn

probate can be quick but can also take a long time - depends on how efficient the executors are and how complex the estate is - it is definitely not going to be as quick as it would have been under POA

Keep_pedalling

This will put a significant delay on the sale, how long will depend on the complexity of the estate, but it could easily add a year to the process. 

Thrugelmir

POA lapses on death. The sale will stall until probate is granted. 

Marcon

Del65 said:

We have recently had an agreed sale on a property, the vendors children have power of attorney, the vendor has just died (two weeks after sale agreed) and the house will be subject to probate; does anyone know for sure if this likely to hold up the sale progressing?, Not had this situation crop up before and as its early days on the sale we feel we may be better to pull out of sale and look elsewhere. Any help gratefully received on this.

How much do you want the property? Although the process will indeed be slowed down while the executors trudge through probate (or speed through it, depending on how easy it is/how quickly the Probate Registry deals with the application), you can exchange conditionally, with a clause setting a time limit on how you will wait for completion, plus a provision for your deposit to be refunded if the deal doesn't go through in that time.

TBagpuss

It will slow it down - the executors will need to apply for probate, and how long that takes will depend on how complex the estate is  as well as how efficient the executors are (and bear in mind that if the children are the executors, they will be grieving as well, so selling may not be at he top of their agenda)

I think in your position I'd probably keep looking at other properties,

 

p00hsticks

Whilst as others say it could be a long time, I think there are grounds to be slightly more optimistic than some of those posting, providing that those who had POA are also the executors of the will (or the closest relatives if there is no will). The fact that the house was already on the market means that presumably it's already been cleared of personal possessions and there is an established valuation for it (was the vendor in a care home ?). Those with POA should have a clear idea of what assets the deceased has and therefore the probate application should be straightforward.

One complication could be that the beneficiaries may decide that there is no longer a need to sell the house (if it was on the market to pay care home fees) and now wish to live in it.