Probate,house valuation and inheritance tax

cantonathecat

Hi im looking for some advice my mum passed away last week and need some advice 
My mum was divorced and left me as the executor of the will and left everything to me as I her only child
I have a copy of the will but the original is with Simpson solicitors 
The house has a estimated valuation of 49000 -59000
And she left 4k in her bank and 1500 in premiums bonds 

I was her carer and have low amount of savings and wondered whats the best way to deal with this with the limited funds 

Keep_pedalling

You will need to apply for probate to deal with the house but you should be able to get access to the money in her bank account without probate to cover funeral expenses. You should also be able to sort her premium bonds before you obtain probate as well. Don’t worry about inheritance tax her estate is far to small to have to pay any.

Contact the solicitors to inform them of the death and to release the will to you. They will require proof of your identity but apart from that it should be straight forward.

Contact her bank to inform them of her death. They will freeze her account so that no more payments are taken from it. When my mum died I made an appointment at my local Barclays branch and it all sorted out there and then and her money was in my account the next day. Again I had to show some identity and produce her will.

if you are planning to keep the house and live in it, then you don’t have to worry too much about obtaining a professional valuation, but if you are planning to sell it then obtain 3 values from estate agents and put the highest estimate on the IHT form (IHT 205). That may sound odd but if you undervalue it you could end up with a capital gains tax issue when it sells for significantly more.

You should be able to apply for probate without using a solicitor as the estate is very straight forward, and if you get stuck there are plenty of people on here willing to help on any questions you have @bout the process.

Brie

Sorry for your loss.

The bank may need to see her death certificate.  They may be happy with a copy or they may want to see the original.  Other organisations may also need it so best to get 2 or 3 copies if you need to post things off to various places.  

cantonathecat

Sorry the house price 490k -590k thats 490000thousand and 59000 thousand

cantonathecat

Keep_pedalling said:

You will need to apply for probate to deal with the house but you should be able to get access to the money in her bank account without probate to cover funeral expenses. You should also be able to sort her premium bonds before you obtain probate as well. Don’t worry about inheritance tax her estate is far to small to have to pay any.

Contact the solicitors to inform them of the death and to release the will to you. They will require proof of your identity but apart from that it should be straight forward.

Contact her bank to inform them of her death. They will freeze her account so that no more payments are taken from it. When my mum died I made an appointment at my local Barclays branch and it all sorted out there and then and her money was in my account the next day. Again I had to show some identity and produce her will.

if you are planning to keep the house and live in it, then you don’t have to worry too much about obtaining a professional valuation, but if you are planning to sell it then obtain 3 values from estate agents and put the highest estimate on the IHT form (IHT 205). That may sound odd but if you undervalue it you could end up with a capital gains tax issue when it sells for significantly more.

You should be able to apply for probate without using a solicitor as the estate is very straight forward, and if you get stuck there are plenty of people on here willing to help on any questions you have @bout the process.

Sorry its 490 thousand too 590 thousand i made a typo and don't know how to change it

SeniorSam

Your Mum's estate will have an inheritance tax allowance of £325,000 plus a residential allowance of £175,000, therefore, depending on the valuation, there may not be inheritance tax to pay from the estate. You will need to obtain a chartered sureyor's written valuation, but as stated by others, contact the solicitors first. You may also obtain free advice from him if he cares to help. Good luck

Keep_pedalling

cantonathecat said:

Keep_pedalling said:

You will need to apply for probate to deal with the house but you should be able to get access to the money in her bank account without probate to cover funeral expenses. You should also be able to sort her premium bonds before you obtain probate as well. Don’t worry about inheritance tax her estate is far to small to have to pay any.

Contact the solicitors to inform them of the death and to release the will to you. They will require proof of your identity but apart from that it should be straight forward.

Contact her bank to inform them of her death. They will freeze her account so that no more payments are taken from it. When my mum died I made an appointment at my local Barclays branch and it all sorted out there and then and her money was in my account the next day. Again I had to show some identity and produce her will.

if you are planning to keep the house and live in it, then you don’t have to worry too much about obtaining a professional valuation, but if you are planning to sell it then obtain 3 values from estate agents and put the highest estimate on the IHT form (IHT 205). That may sound odd but if you undervalue it you could end up with a capital gains tax issue when it sells for significantly more.

You should be able to apply for probate without using a solicitor as the estate is very straight forward, and if you get stuck there are plenty of people on here willing to help on any questions you have @bout the process.

Sorry its 490 thousand too 590 thousand i made a typo and don't know how to change it

So it is possible that some IHT will be due but there are not enough liquid assets in the estate to pay it. Are you planning on keeping the house or selling it?

cantonathecat

Haven't decided I'd like to stay but if I have to pay too much I'd have to sell I'd prefer to stay it just depends if I can afford it thats why I'm here so I can see what outcomes so I can decide 

Keep_pedalling

cantonathecat said:

Haven't decided I'd like to stay but if I have to pay too much I'd have to sell I'd prefer to stay it just depends if I can afford it thats why I'm here so I can see what outcomes so I can decide 

Boarder-line estates are the ones most likely to be looked at closely by HMRC. I would suggest that you get a firm valuation from a RICS surveyor. This is something that you would need to pay for but it will give you a better idea of where you stand and will provide a solid valuation that would stand up to an HMRC challenge.

Where IHT is due but there are no liquid assets to pay for it you do have the option of paying it in instalments over 10 years so that would be an option if you wanted to stay and can afford the instalments. 

Thrugelmir

Get a formal RICS valuation report for probate purposes. Saves any hassle with the HMRC.