Inheritance: Tenancy in Common and having to live with somebody you wouldn’t want to!

Misha96

I have been friends with an elderly couple for about several years. Both had been married before with children from their previous partnerships. They owned their home as Tenants in Common with the husband’s disabled daughter living with them.

A year ago, the husband died. His widow was not an executor of his estate and has not been shown the will.  She is a very nervy person and has not asked. However, she has been told that her husband's half-ownership of the property has passed to her disabled stepdaughter. Probate has not been granted. I am wondering whether it has even been applied for despite property being involved.

The relationship between my friend and her disabled stepdaughter is not good and, frankly, I am sometimes concerned about elder abuse.

Is it possible for one of two tenants in common to change the way a property is owned to enable both parties to go their separate ways?

Thanks you for any advice.

elsien

Whatever the type of ownership, the disabled stepdaughter is going to need to agree to either sell up or buy your friend’s share.
Are either of those options likely because the only way to sell half a house is to sell it to the other owner or for both to sell up and go their separate ways. 

Who are the executors of the will?

What else was in the estate, has she been left anything else, and could she take those assets instead of her share of the house, if the executors were agreeable?

Misha96

I doubt that either party could afford to buy the other out. I think the executors include at least one child of the deceased but without sight of the will nobody can be certain of anything. It's a right mess.

Flugelhorn

Oh dear - someone really needs to look at the will - it could be the the husbands half has been transferred to to the daughter via an IPDI  trust which would normally allow the widow to remain there until she passes or moves and the property is sold, this is obviously more difficult with the daughter living with them

Only option probably is to sell up and go their separate ways 

theoretica

It seems likely that she will leave her half of the house to her own children - so sooner or later the issue of selling the house and splitting the proceeds will come up (she does have a will, I hope?).  If there is resistance to selling the house now pointing out that the step daughter's current living arrangements won't last forever and there are advantages to sorting it and separating now in a controlled manner rather than later.

Husband's will is very crucial - without one his widow would inherit all (or if large the first portion) of the estate. It seems that all she has at present is someone saying she didn't inherit the house and no proof...  If probate has been granted that and the will become easy to get from the government and worth doing.  If it hasn't, she could talk about seeking advice and getting letters of administration to administer the estate as intestate which would surely force the will to be produced and probate sought?

Misha96

Flugelhorn said:

Oh dear - someone really needs to look at the will - it could be the the husbands half has been transferred to to the daughter via an IPDI  trust which would normally allow the widow to remain there until she passes or moves and the property is sold, this is obviously more difficult with the daughter living with them

Only option probably is to sell up and go their separate ways 

The will hasn't been probated and the surviving partner has no legal right to see it. She will no push the matter. I think she's scared.

Misha96

theoretica said:

It seems likely that she will leave her half of the house to her own children - so sooner or later the issue of selling the house and splitting the proceeds will come up (she does have a will, I hope?).  If there is resistance to selling the house now pointing out that the step daughter's current living arrangements won't last forever and there are advantages to sorting it and separating now in a controlled manner rather than later.

Husband's will is very crucial - without one his widow would inherit all (or if large the first portion) of the estate. It seems that all she has at present is someone saying she didn't inherit the house and no proof...  If probate has been granted that and the will become easy to get from the government and worth doing.  If it hasn't, she could talk about seeking advice and getting letters of administration to administer the estate as intestate which would surely force the will to be produced and probate sought?

Probate has not been granted. 

I am uncertain as to whether my friend has a will in place. She is very vague. She wants to make a will but has said that she can't until her husband's will is probated. This is obvious nonsense. 

Were my friend to make a will ( I have doubts about capacity) I fear she might be bullied ("nicely") into leaving her share of the property to the stepdaughter. 

I shall be seeing my friend soon and shall make some gentle queries but I suspect the situation will continue until her own death.

madbadrob

Ok Probate hasnt been granted therefore the step daughter techincally as no right to the 50% share of the deceased house.  It technically resides with the deceased.  THe will needs to pe proved and then all IHT implications etc come to the fore.  Your friend here is in the driving seat because if her late husbands share of the house and any shared monies etc comes to more than £325000 pounds IHT is payable at 40% although this can be waived and the surviving spouse can then claim this and double her own IHT liability limit when she dies.  

Your friend is quite right until the will is proved she as no legal right to see it but as others have said if she doesnt see it how does she know it exists and what any legacies may be?  I would convince your friend to tell whoever is advising her of the will that if no will is proved then the wife will apply for letters of administration.  This will then meaan everything of the first 325k of the deceased money plus 50% of everything over that amount becomes the surviving spouse under the rules of intestacy.  

The next question is "what is the manner of the daughters disability" and " has the house been adapted to assist her in living as independent life as possible?"  This will determine what else your friend could do.  If the disability is something like missing a limb or paralysed etc and no adaptions have been made to the house then your friend could force a sale of the property to allow the two parties to not live in conditions of animosity.  However if the disabiloites previously mentioned have led to adaptions in the house then this would be very unlikely to be allowed.  Meaning the friend would have to ask to be bought out as others have previously suggested.  If the disability is somethibng more like a mental disability such as Autism etc then even without adaptations a forced sale would be unlikely.  I am assuming the latter is not the case as you make no mention of her needing carers etc

Ultimately legal advice from a solicitor may be the best advice to give your friend.  If she wont do that then push her to seek letters of administration.

Rob

Misha96

madbadrob said:

Ok Probate hasnt been granted therefore the step daughter techincally as no right to the 50% share of the deceased house.  It technically resides with the deceased.  THe will needs to pe proved and then all IHT implications etc come to the fore.  Your friend here is in the driving seat because if her late husbands share of the house and any shared monies etc comes to more than £325000 pounds IHT is payable at 40% although this can be waived and the surviving spouse can then claim this and double her own IHT liability limit when she dies.  

Your friend is quite right until the will is proved she as no legal right to see it but as others have said if she doesnt see it how does she know it exists and what any legacies may be?  I would convince your friend to tell whoever is advising her of the will that if no will is proved then the wife will apply for letters of administration.  This will then meaan everything of the first 325k of the deceased money plus 50% of everything over that amount becomes the surviving spouse under the rules of intestacy.  

The next question is "what is the manner of the daughters disability" and " has the house been adapted to assist her in living as independent life as possible?"  This will determine what else your friend could do.  If the disability is something like missing a limb or paralysed etc and no adaptions have been made to the house then your friend could force a sale of the property to allow the two parties to not live in conditions of animosity.  However if the disabiloites previously mentioned have led to adaptions in the house then this would be very unlikely to be allowed.  Meaning the friend would have to ask to be bought out as others have previously suggested.  If the disability is somethibng more like a mental disability such as Autism etc then even without adaptations a forced sale would be unlikely.  I am assuming the latter is not the case as you make no mention of her needing carers etc

Ultimately legal advice from a solicitor may be the best advice to give your friend.  If she wont do that then push her to seek letters of administration.

Rob

Thanks. I'm going to advise my friend that if the will is not probated she must apply for Letters of Admin. The stepdaughter's disability has not necessitated in adaptations to the property, though I think she paid for a new bathroom suite.

madbadrob

Misha96 said:

madbadrob said:

Ok Probate hasnt been granted therefore the step daughter techincally as no right to the 50% share of the deceased house.  It technically resides with the deceased.  THe will needs to pe proved and then all IHT implications etc come to the fore.  Your friend here is in the driving seat because if her late husbands share of the house and any shared monies etc comes to more than £325000 pounds IHT is payable at 40% although this can be waived and the surviving spouse can then claim this and double her own IHT liability limit when she dies.  

Your friend is quite right until the will is proved she as no legal right to see it but as others have said if she doesnt see it how does she know it exists and what any legacies may be?  I would convince your friend to tell whoever is advising her of the will that if no will is proved then the wife will apply for letters of administration.  This will then meaan everything of the first 325k of the deceased money plus 50% of everything over that amount becomes the surviving spouse under the rules of intestacy.  

The next question is "what is the manner of the daughters disability" and " has the house been adapted to assist her in living as independent life as possible?"  This will determine what else your friend could do.  If the disability is something like missing a limb or paralysed etc and no adaptions have been made to the house then your friend could force a sale of the property to allow the two parties to not live in conditions of animosity.  However if the disabiloites previously mentioned have led to adaptions in the house then this would be very unlikely to be allowed.  Meaning the friend would have to ask to be bought out as others have previously suggested.  If the disability is somethibng more like a mental disability such as Autism etc then even without adaptations a forced sale would be unlikely.  I am assuming the latter is not the case as you make no mention of her needing carers etc

Ultimately legal advice from a solicitor may be the best advice to give your friend.  If she wont do that then push her to seek letters of administration.

Rob

Thanks. I'm going to advise my friend that if the will is not probated she must apply for Letters of Admin. The stepdaughter's disability has not necessitated in adaptations to the property, though I think she paid for a new bathroom suite.

Whether she paid for the bathroom or not if its not a specific one for her disability will make no difference should there need to be a forced sale

Rob

RAS

Start by actually checking the Land Registry and confirming that the property is held as tenants in common. Not least as there have been several instances here where wills were written on that assumption and no-one bothered to sever the tenancy. Cost £7 via the gov.uk site.