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Using an inheritance to buy a council flat via "right to buy" for someone on benefits

Inigo_Montoya
Posts: 1,216 Forumite


My sister is currently living on benefits - she was on Disability Living Allowance but recently has been deemed fit for work so as I currently understand it is now on Universal Basic Income & I believe also gets her rent & council tax paid
She is due to receive an inheritance which is to be put into a Trust so should not affect her benefits
Would using some of that inheritance to buy her council flat via Right To Buy be a good investment ?
Obviously she would "lose" the value of the rent that she receives but would be able to buy the flat at a signifcant discount of up to £84000
- there may also be service charges and other expenses to pay of course as well on the flat
Also apart from the "loss" of rental benefit would there be any other affect on her benefits from owning her own flat ?
She is due to receive an inheritance which is to be put into a Trust so should not affect her benefits
Would using some of that inheritance to buy her council flat via Right To Buy be a good investment ?
Obviously she would "lose" the value of the rent that she receives but would be able to buy the flat at a signifcant discount of up to £84000
- there may also be service charges and other expenses to pay of course as well on the flat
Also apart from the "loss" of rental benefit would there be any other affect on her benefits from owning her own flat ?
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Comments
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Can be a really bad idea.
Not only would she now be liable for any repairs to th flat, but also liable to pay a proportion of the cost of any remedial or refurbishment works to the block.If you are querying your Council Tax band would you please state whether you are in England, Scotland or Wales6 -
Giving her a secure home for the rest of her life would be a good idea. Has the inheritance already been put into a trust though? Is it written in the will to be in Trust or is it cash that she has inherited that you want to put in trust? If the latter, it may significantly affect any benefits she may be entitled to.
Best to check with a specialist to give you sound legal advice30th June 2021 completely debt free…. Downsized, reduced working hours and living the dream.2 -
How would she benefit from the £84k discount? Seems she would need to sell the flat to actually see that, and would then need somewhere else to live.
But a banker, engaged at enormous expense,Had the whole of their cash in his care.
Lewis Carroll1 -
davilown said:Giving her a secure home for the rest of her life would be a good idea. Has the inheritance already been put into a trust though? Is it written in the will to be in Trust or is it cash that she has inherited that you want to put in trust? If the latter, it may significantly affect any benefits she may be entitled to.
Best to check with a specialist to give you sound legal advice
I was just wondering if anybody knew if using this Trust money to buy her flat has any implications for her benefits - if the purchased flat was put into the Trust then I assume not but if the flat was put into her name then there possibilly could be
As far as ongoing charges & possible liabilities for flat / block repairs goes that would be disclosed during the Right to Buy process so we could make a decision then on whether to proceed or not0 -
Inigo_Montoya said:davilown said:Giving her a secure home for the rest of her life would be a good idea. Has the inheritance already been put into a trust though? Is it written in the will to be in Trust or is it cash that she has inherited that you want to put in trust? If the latter, it may significantly affect any benefits she may be entitled to.
Best to check with a specialist to give you sound legal advice4 -
@Inigo_Montoya For most people I see, an RTB with full discount is a no-brainer due to the size of the discount you get and especially so if there is an exit from the property planned for in the medium-term.
In this case as one of the posters above mentioned, there is an interplay of multiple things so you would be best off getting proper advice. You could start off with CAB, Age UK (if over 50/60). They can potentially refer you to other similar orgs like Law Centres etc who can answer complex benefits queries.I am a Mortgage Adviser - You should note that this site doesn't check my status as a mortgage adviser, so you need to take my word for it. This signature is here as I follow MSE's Mortgage Adviser Code of Conduct. Any posts on here are for information and discussion purposes only and shouldn't be seen as financial advice.
PLEASE DO NOT SEND PMs asking for one-to-one-advice, or representation.
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Inigo_Montoya said:..... ......
She is due to receive an inheritance which is to be put into a Trust so should not affect her benefits
......
https://www.entitledto.co.uk/help/Deprivation-of-savings-and-other-capital-Universal-Credit
Or does the will specifically (now..) state money goes to a trust, please?
(I have knowledge of a trust named in a will granting £xxxx to a trust, makeup of the trust defined in will, to hold property for a relative during her lifetime... That was legal...)0 -
theartfullodger said:Inigo_Montoya said:..... ......
She is due to receive an inheritance which is to be put into a Trust so should not affect her benefits
......
https://www.entitledto.co.uk/help/Deprivation-of-savings-and-other-capital-Universal-Credit
Or does the will specifically (now..) state money goes to a trust, please?
(I have knowledge of a trust named in a will granting £xxxx to a trust, makeup of the trust defined in will, to hold property for a relative during her lifetime... That was legal...)0
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