Applying For Probate

WYSPECIAL

Aunt and Uncle (in law) made mirror Wills whereby each was the executor for the other and inherited the entire estate so long as they survived by 30 days. If they didn't then I was executor with the estate being split between various people.

Uncle died in May this year and nothing much was done beyond using the Tell Us Once service and notifying his occupational pension provider. Aunt, who was terminally ill, died at the end of June.

I know I will need to get probate to deal with my Aunt's estate but will I also need it for my Uncle's? From the wording of his Will I'm not even sure if I can apply as my Aunt did survive him by 30 days and there is no mention of any other circumstances in which I was to be executor.

It looks like everything is in joint names bank account etc wise and the property they lived in, which was purchased around 1970, is unregistered if that makes any difference.

Keep_pedalling

You will only need it if he had sole assets that are still in his name and those assets cannot be released without probate, which does not sound like the case here.

RAS

The registration of the property isn't the issue. Assuming you have the deeds, who was listed as owner?

If they were joint owners, the property wasn't part of of uncle's estate because they each owned 100% of the property and aunt became sole owner after his death.

Reed_Richards

Your uncle's estate will need an executor (or someone with Letters of Administration) and given that you are the executor for your aunt and that your aunt inherits everything from your uncle then you a good candidate to be that executor, I would have thought. But I don't know if the fact that you are not a blood relative to your uncle complicates matters.

Keep_pedalling

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/comment/82074295#Comment_82074295

Not if everything was jointly owned, as seems to be the case here.

WYSPECIAL

Other than his pensions everything I have found so far is in joint names so hopefully I won’t need probate or letters of administration?

He had no blood relatives and I am named as executor if my aunt didn’t survive him so if anything is needed it is almost certainly going to be me that has to sort it.

RAS

So, you'll need to contact the pensions funds.

Some do make lump sum pay outs if the deceased retired "recently" and may or may not require probate.

Other pensions cease entirely on the death of the surviving spouse, so there's a risk of a small overpayment.

WYSPECIAL

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/comment/82074342#Comment_82074342

Pension were definitely in payment more than than five years so unlikely to be any lump sum to be paid. Still waiting to hear if there was any widows pension payable but they have now been informed of the second death so even if there was it will only be for a few weeks.

Main thing I think will be selling the house so need to check if that is in joint names.

RAS

My pension scheme paid out a lump sum for death within 10 years of commencement.

WYSPECIAL

There is a big bundle of papers in a folder labelled "House Deeds".

What will the house deeds actually look like? I have only ever seen the print outs you get from Land Registry.

There are some very impressive documents called Abstract of the Title and Supplemental Abstract of the Title from 1965 which list events going back to 1901. It looks like the land was sold for housing in 1965.

Then there is another document titled Conveyance of Freehold property…… this seems to transfer the property from the previous owners to my Aunt and Uncle.

Everything else in there is the usual things like mining searches, details of mortgage back when they bought it etc

Everything is in both of their names, albeit my Aunt's maiden name but I know they did buy the house before they married.

Will the property not being registered with Land Registry delay selling it or will the conveyancing solicitor be able to sort out registration at the time of sale?

Reed_Richards

If your "Deeds" are anything like mine, there will be a Conveyance document that conveys the same information as a Land Registry "print-out" plus a lot of extra stuff that is almost certainly never going to be on any use but which nobody dares to throw away. My Conveyance document was created when the land was sold to be built-on and lists the rights of the property owner and and covenants associated with the property. For example, a covenant in my deeds prevents me from keeping chickens.