Guidance on children's inheritance

BusyLizzy · 9 October 2019 at 5:56PM

Hello all

I'm looking for some guidance please.

I divorced my (ex) husband many years ago and our house is owned 50/50 as tenants in common. I have been responsible for the mortgage for the past 8 years. Sadly my ex husband died two years ago without a will. I have been do caught up in helping our children through the grieving process that I haven't done anything about it yet. How would we go about getting the children's names onto the deeds of the house, how do I start the whole process? A brief call to a solicitor quoted nearly £1000 to do it for me. Is it possible to do it ourselves?

I should say that our divorce and the property is in England. My ex returned to the Republic of Ireland after we divorced which is where he died. Also, two of our children are adults but our youngest is 17. We would all like to sell the house next summer when my youngest finishes school so I need to get it sorted soon.
Amy advice would be appreciated.

xylophone · 9 October 2019 at 6:56PM

You divorced your children's father who afterwards died intestate but owning a 50% interest in a property (and other assets)? He was a resident of the RoI when he died so presumably his estate will be dealt with under RoI law?

Was he unmarried and without other issue when he died?

See Intestacy here

https://www.citizensinformation.ie/en/death/the_deceaseds_estate/what_happens_the_deceaseds_estate.html

UK intestacy rules here

https://www.gov.uk/inherits-someone-dies-without-will

You owned the UK property as Tenants -in- Common - presumably therefore there was a Form A restriction?

See https://www.land-registry-documents.co.uk/information/joint-ownership-tennants/

In order to protect the beneficiaries, when joint proprietors originally decide to hold a property as tenants in common a restriction should be registered at Land Registry. Where the transfer to the proprietors indicates they wish to hold as tenants in common this restriction will be registered automatically. The effect of the restriction is that a disposition (i.e. a transfer or mortgage) by a sole proprietor cannot be registered.

To get past this restriction and sell the property, the sole surviving tenant in common can appoint a second trustee along with himself. This can be done either in the transfer or by a separate deed. The trustee then signs the transfer along with the proprietor and receives the sale proceeds jointly. It is then the responsibility of the trustee together with the surviving tenant in common to ensure that the beneficiaries receive their share. As long as the purchase money is paid to two or more trustees the purchaser is protected from any claim that the beneficiaries might have if they do not receive the money they are entitled to.

Presumably the administrator of your husband's estate could be the second appointed Trustee?

MovingForwards · 9 October 2019 at 7:25PM

One thing to think about is if you put the 50% belonging to your deceased ex into the kids names, when the last one turns 18, all of them will lose their first time buyer status.

If the property is being sold next year, which isn't that far away, would it not be best to hold on, sell up then give them their 1/3 of the 50%, leaving them free to keep their first time buyer status?

Or are you in a position to buy out their 50% so they have cash?

Tom99 · 10 October 2019 at 2:33AM

You can apply to the Land Reg to have your ex-husbands name removed from the register which will leave you as the sole legal owner holding the property on trust for yourself and your children.
Then, as said above, when you come to sell you can appoint say one of your adult children as the 2nd trustee.
See section 3:
https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/devolution-on-the-death-of-a-registered-proprietor/practice-guide-6-devolution-on-the-death-of-a-registered-proprietor#death-of-a-joint-proprietor-of-a-registered-estate-or-of-a-charge-or-mortgage

BusyLizzy · 14 October 2019 at 5:53PM

Thank you all for your advice.

Guidance on children's inheritance

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