Property, step children, inheritance/wills

[Barsh]

Trying to work out what's fair.

At the moment I live in DH's house which he owns outright. If he dies then I inherit 2/3 of the value of the house his 3 grown up kids inherit the rest (plus some other money) and I have 2 years in which to buy out his kids or sell the house to raise the money to give them.

The idea was that I wouldn't be homeless if he died.

We are now buying a house together that requires a mortgage. He is putting in his house (300K) as the equity. We will be sharing mortgage payments, I'll be paying slightly more.

We are now trying to work out what's fair. I think the consensus we are coming to is that we have to just write it that the kids will get a sum equivalent to his equity - which, unless I've won the lottery, will mean I would have to sell.

I don't want to be in the position of having a life interest in the property. They should get what's due to them.

Is there any other way of doing this?

Slightly tangential question, but what happens if you die? Does your money then go to his adult kids?

My DF has agreed that, if he dies, all of the value of the house goes to his partner, then when she dies it all comes to us (2 kids).

Slightly trust based, she could spend it all, or it could be required for care, but it means she can stay or sell. All being well I reckon she would move somewhere smaller and release the funds.

best way is to leave it for life time use but value going to end benefactors - I would say for complexity see a lawyer to make it clear what you want.

You agreed the house would be 2/3 yours and 1/3 his if it happened in old home so work out what that 1/3 wld be as a proprotion of your house and use that amount and leave it to you for lifetime use or x yrs as prev.

The way I'd do it is that the house would go to you, and the adult kids would inherit items of particular emotional value and a share of whatever money there is that isn't connected to the house.

I have half siblings. When my dad died my mum inherited everything and asked my half siblings if there were items of particular interest to them that they would like to inherit. They each chose one thing and that was that. But I'd make sure your husband talks to his children about whatever he decides because if it comes as a surprise to his children that opens up for a world of family angst and pain. Don't let wills be a surprise, it's so nasty. Situations are tense and fraught enough without failed expectations.

My parents are still together but have it so when one dies the other one inherits everything and when they are both gone us 2 children get 50/50 of everything.

I think you need to pay for advice from a competent solicitor dealing with Wills and Trusts. It’s money well spent (not a lawyer).
DH x 2 and I did this and they raise all sorts of points you may not have considered.

If you were both their parents they wouldn’t get anything till you’d both died so don’t risk being homeless so they get their cash early.

take out a life insurance policy so that his children get that instead or you get it to buy out the house

My friends dad and stepmum bases will on what they had put in. So he put In 80k when the house was worth 240k. He died and they get a third of value on her death. In their circs very fair as really it was her house.

I've left my DH a lifetime interest in my house. Within a trust where my natural children get everything. My DH has brought no capital to our financial lives and therefore his children will inherit his life insurance policy and I get nothing as he has nothing else. I've worked hard all my life to pay my mortgage off early and prior to my marriage to DH. As others have said, take legal advice.

If we divorced on the other hand.....

The majority of my husband's estate is tied up in his house. Neither of us want the position that they are waiting till I die before they see that money.

We will get proper advice, we did previously, but I was wondering if there were any other models?

We are of an age when life insurance is very very expensive. So he has some cover but not that would cover that amount of money.

If I die first my estate is divided up between my siblings and my DH. I don't have kids. My estate will be whatever in bank account plus the house I owned before I moved in with DH.

The 2/3 and 1/3 split last time came about because I could have sold my house to fund buying his kids out of the house we are in now. And got a small mortgage. Now its a bigger mortgage I'd struggle to pay them out his equity.

His equity would be his share after the mortgage is deducted, so you would take your mortgage off then split 2/3 and 1/3.

If you don't want a life interest then really the options are to give you a time period to be allowed to live in the property and at the end of that the property is sold and money split (or you buy them out). That would mean you managing with the mortgage in the meantime. Would that give you enough left over?

Otherwise, DH splits his share of the house. Rather than giving 2/3rd (if that is what he will have in the new house) to his children, he gives them say equivalent to a half share in the house and you the rest of his share, so they get something upfront from selling the house/you buying them out. You can then leave the bit left to you back to them in your Will so they get it eventually, but you have enough for a new house in the meantime or until you can afford to give them the money.

@CornishMaid1 I think the different split in the house is probably it with a provision in my will for his kids.