Advice in Will about "proof of funds"

PeterE17

What advice are folks including in their wills or accompanying documentation about the "proof of funds" now being requested by conveyancers during the house-buying process?

There's a note in another thread that says "Anyone can claim they had an inheritance", or words to that effect. 

Is this a new requirement? 

Keep_pedalling

You don’t need to include anything an inheritance is pretty easy to prove. In that thread all that was required was a copy of the will.

YBR

Not sure of the point of this - 

On one hand, your will comes into affect after your death so you won't be buying a house;

On the other, if a beneficiary of yours uses their inheritance from you as a deposit on a house they can simply show a copy of the will or a letter from an executor, I guess, but it won't be your problem!

Sorry if that's very blunt. I've never heard of anything about proof of funds in a Will...

tacpot12

It's difficult to image what you could put in your Will that would prove the source of the funds. 

Silvertabby

tacpot12 said:

It's difficult to image what you could put in your Will that would prove the source of the funds. 

This.  An old Will could easily say "I leave £50K to  little Jimmy" but that means nothing if the money had since been spent.

PeterE17

Keep_pedalling said:

You don’t need to include anything an inheritance is pretty easy to prove. In that thread all that was required was a copy of the will.

Typically a will won't quote an amount, so a copy of a will won't always be adequate proof. 

PeterE17

YBR said:

Not sure of the point of this - 

On the other, if a beneficiary of yours uses their inheritance from you as a deposit on a house they can simply show a copy of the will or a letter from an executor, I guess, but it won't be your problem!

That's the point, to save beneficiaries any trouble if they decide to buy a house. A copy of the will might not suffice; an executor's letter might, as long as the beneficiaries have the foresight to keep the letter safely somewhere. That's probably the best advice, tell the beneficiaries to demand a letter and keep it safe.    

Nearlyold

We're currently in the process of buying a property using an inheritance. Our Solicitor dealing with the purchase has sent a letter outlining their requirements for "Proof of Source of Funds" for various scenarios such as Pension Release, Sale of Shares, Gambling, Compensation Award, Savings etc. For Inhertance they require :- a letter from the executors or solicitors stating how much you are being paid as a Beneficiary and a copy of an original bank statement showing the money going in to your account from the solicitor/executors bank account. There's no requirement listed to see the will.

PeterE17

Nearlyold said:

We're currently in the process of buying a property using an inheritance. Our Solicitor dealing with the purchase has sent a letter outlining their requirements for "Proof of Source of Funds" for various scenarios such as Pension Release, Sale of Shares, Gambling, Compensation Award, Savings etc. For Inhertance they require :- a letter from the executors or solicitors stating how much you are being paid as a Beneficiary and a copy of an original bank statement showing the money going in to your account from the solicitor/executors bank account. There's no requirement listed to see the will.

Thanks @Nearlyold, that's useful. 

I raised the point because in 2020 when I bought a house I was asked to prove that I had the funds. In 2024, buying another house, I was asked again to prove that I had the funds and also to show how I acquired them. What changed between 2020 and 2024 to make the conveyancer ask for the origins of my (or anyone's) funds?

It seems to me that a lot of people will not have the proof they need because they've destroyed their records (or never received any).  

EasySolution

What changed between 2020 -2024.

AML Anti Money Laundering Regulations get more stringent every so often.

Solicitors have to abide by the rules

Marcon

EasySolution said:

What changed between 2020 -2024.

AML Anti Money Laundering Regulations get more stringent every so often.

Solicitors have to abide by the rules

Indeed!

OP, have a read of this which should answer your questions: https://www.lawsociety.org.uk/topics/anti-money-laundering/source-of-funds-clean-or-consistent-with-risk