Will's advice

You both need wills as Keep pedalling says. What about pensions? Joint loans will be the survivors problem money in single names will go to the NOK. Basically a double whammy. Why a declaration & not a joint tenancy, are you sure that is valid? Or is it actually a declaration that gives the survivor rights to the other half of the house for life & then it reverts?

lifeofease wrote: »

Thank you both for your really useful replies,I will have to sort out Wills but don't really know where to start or where to go to get them done. Bad Memory - it is actually a joint tenancy, sorry I couldn't remember what it was called. Will this mean the house becomes mine and not his daughters even though they will be NOK. I would hate to end up in a situation where they owned half my house!
Keep Pedalling - When you say 'formalise' do you mean marriage? If we were to get married would that change things? Thanks

To sort your wills you need to make an appointment with a local solisitor. Do not use a will writing company or attempt to DIY it.

Your situation is very common, but if you leave things the way they are and your partner dies first then his daughters staned to lose their inheritance. What most people would do here is to split the ownership as tenants in common which means each can leave their share to whoever they like. Rather than simply leaving a share directly it can be set up as a life trust for the survivor. If he dies he leaves his share to his children but you retain the right to live in the property until you die or give up the right to remain.

Yes I did mean marry, or take up the option of civil partnership. If your assets, including your share of the house, exceed £325k then inheritance tax will need to be paid, which could force the sale of the house if other assets are not available to pay it. Anything left to a spouse or civil partner is exempt from IHT and your nil rate band is transferable to the surviving spouse / partner.

lifeofease wrote: »

Keep Pedalling: Your situation is very common, but if you leave things the way they are and your partner dies first then his daughters staned to lose their inheritance.

- I understand your concerns as an outsider looking in, however I would never leave his daughters without anything and would always make sure they had a fair shared in the future when I died. I was more concerned that if I die first and the house passes to my partner then my nieces would loose out and I am very close to them compared to my partners daughters who hardly ever speak to me but would end up having my share of the house,which incidentally I have put far more money into than my partner. So yes I need to sort it! Thank you for your help in thinking it through.

Actually, on my step fathers dying bed, his daughters tried to get him to change his Will to leave everything to them. Took him to lawyers and all.

But he died too soon, and although my Mother made a Will after his death, leaving the step daughters £50K, she wrote another Will about 6 years later, leaving them out completely.

This hightlighted to me, the importance of leaving my estate to whome I want it to, not relying on my husband, so my children get my estate, although husband gets a life interest!

FYI, Will Aid 2018 is now taking bookings for next month

https://www.willaid.org.uk/


Local solicitors will draw up simple wills in return for a donation to charity