Confusion over Tenants in Common and who can own what

Heliocentric

Hello,

My mum passed away in October; my father has dementia and he is in a care home (I hold the deputyship/LPA for him). Previously we all lived together in their home and they both own the house as tenants in common. I have lived here in that home all my life.

My mum has left her share of the house in the Will to me. Is it right that although they are tenants in common, I still cannot transfer half of the legal ownership to myself? So I cannot put my name on the deeds?

Does the 'share' only become active at the point of sale? What do I do since I do not want to sell the house, I want to live here? Who gets to decide whether or not I can live in the house?

Also what do I need to do to legally state that I will own half of the share of the house? If I cannot add my name to the deeds, is there an official document (aside from the Will) that I can get drafted to confirm this share ownership, for my own peace of mind?

Thanks.

Keep_pedalling

Yes you can transpire your mother’s share to your name, but if his share is falls within the financial assessment for his care costs then your best option If you  is to purchase you father’s share of the house if you are in a position to do so.

Brie

Is the council contributing to your father's costs for the care home?  Are they ever likely to?  If not then there's nothing to worry about.  

If they are then you need to ask them what they intend.  With us we were told by the council that once MiL's money got too low that they would look at her share of the house to cover costs.  Because I was already over 60 they wouldn't consider trying to force a sale but simply put a lien on her share so they could recover the money when the house was eventually sold.  

So as Keep states if you purchase your father's share, at market prices, then you free up money to keep him in comfort at the care home and your self where you want to live.  

km1500

tenants in common means the house is effectively split in two - half belongs to your mum and half to your dad

you can transfer your mum's half to yourself anytime you want and your name will be on the deeds as a joint owner tenants in common

you can also purchase your father's half in the normal way of buying a property.  the money should be paid be in his bank account to help pay for his care

MikeJXE

Who has your father left his share to ?

Heliocentric

Brie said:

Is the council contributing to your father's costs for the care home?  Are they ever likely to?  If not then there's nothing to worry about.  

If they are then you need to ask them what they intend.  With us we were told by the council that once MiL's money got too low that they would look at her share of the house to cover costs.  Because I was already over 60 they wouldn't consider trying to force a sale but simply put a lien on her share so they could recover the money when the house was eventually sold.  

So as Keep states if you purchase your father's share, at market prices, then you free up money to keep him in comfort at the care home and your self where you want to live.  

Yes the local authority pays most of his costs for the care home. I told them my mum's share will come to me and that I intend to live in the home. They asked for proof that I lived there my whole life, which surprised me since they should have records going all the way back to the early 80s but I gave them evidence and they asked no further questions. I don't want to go back to them at this point.

I can't afford to purchase his share. I'm on a very low salary.

Heliocentric

MikeJXE said:

Who has your father left his share to ?

Not 100% sure. I cannot find a Will. He said 'it will be a nice surprise for you' but that's it. I won't be able to find a Will when it comes to it either.

Heliocentric

km1500 said:

tenants in common means the house is effectively split in two - half belongs to your mum and half to your dad

you can transfer your mum's half to yourself anytime you want and your name will be on the deeds as a joint owner tenants in common

you can also purchase your father's half in the normal way of buying a property.  the money should be paid be in his bank account to help pay for his care

Thank you. I would ideally put my name on the deeds then, if it's possible. I thought I had read that it wasn't - that the share is mine (at the point of sale) but the legal ownership would be my father's.

Heliocentric

Keep_pedalling said:

Yes you can transpire your mother’s share to your name, but if his share is falls within the financial assessment for his care costs then your best option If you  is to purchase you father’s share of the house if you are in a position to do so.

Thank you, that's good if I can put it in my name. 

I already had this discussion with the local authority. They asked me to prove that I lived in the house my whole life and they've left it at that. 

I can't afford to buy my father's share, sadly.

MikeJXE

Heliocentric said:

MikeJXE said:

Who has your father left his share to ?

Not 100% sure. I cannot find a Will. He said 'it will be a nice surprise for you' but that's it. I won't be able to find a Will when it comes to it either.

If you have an LPA for him why can't you ask his solicitor ? 

MikeJXE

I'm not sure this will help you but 

My daughter's in laws father is selling his flat but he has dementia and his solicitor couldn't get the answer he needed to sign the paperwork.

My daughter in law has an LPA for him but hadn't got it with her 

My daughter in law tried several times to convince the solicitor but no avail until she said why am I here dad ?

He said to sign to sell the flat, that convinced the solicitor to go ahead 

Maybe you should ask your dad in different ways till you get an answer