To not sell a potentially £million plus property for £200,000?

[InheritanceDilema]

Got a really sticky situation and need some advice.

FIL has died and Dh and BIL have inherited his house and small holding. We are not local and do not wish to live there. It's BILs dream to live there and he wants to buy us out and will happily pay us half of the £400,000 valuation of the small holding inc the house.

There are eight acres of land and I genuinely believe that planning permission could be got. The fields are in the middle of a village, so surrounded by built up areas/houses on all sides. Obviously if planning permission was gained the value of the land would be a lot more.

Bil has no interest in planning permission or making any money. He wants to live in his childhood home surrounded by goats, chickens and gooseberry bushes living a River Cottage dream. Dh doesn't want to rock the boat and doesn't know what to do.

I know if we did sell it we could put a thing on the sale saying if BIL did in the future get planning permission we would be entitled to more money. But I know BIL wouldn't ever seek planning permission. He won't even consider only having some of the land and planning permission for the rest of it. He wants a couple of ponies and says he needs all the land. I don't want to kiss goodbye to a considerable amount of money just to keep the peace.....we're not that well off. BIL owns 4 houses and already has a fantastic pension as well as rental income and his current house is worth half a million. We're in a terrace with no other houses and while £200,000 is a lot of money i don't think it's fair that BIL expects us to let him have his own way.

There is currently an inherited property dispute going on in my DH family. These are usually the most civilised folk on the planet, not any more. A sale has been forced, no one can person can afford to buy it. People have been struck off Christmas card lists which is pretty virulent for DH family.

The BIL once he owns that property outright can do what he likes with it. He may not have any plans to sell for development but he may for whatever reason change his mind.

I think the op is sensible and the fairest way forward for all is her DH to be bought out at current prices and have the covenant drawn up regarding land sold for development.

It would be naive to just let the BIL do what he wants.

Butt out and leave it to your BIL and DH. It's nothing to do with you. If DH is happy to agree with BIL then so should you be. After all - it's their father that has died.

Otherwise you may be seen as a money grabbing bitch

Your dh is feeling really conflicted. He knows that he is likely to be shafted again and that it's unfair that bil "won't entertain" other options, but he feels guilty for standing in the way of the dream. By you making non committal noises you are not supporting your dh at all. He probably wants validation of his feelings. Yes, he can make the final decision but he needs you to talk it all through with you and hear your honest opinions.

At the time it was only 20k that dh was shafted out of. That 20k has been multiplied many times over with property price rises probably why bil can afford to buy dh out but dh can't afford to buy bil out Even taking the development potential out of it, the bil will be left with an increasing in value asset. Dh will have sold his increasing in value asset. Bils DC will inherit loads due to property price rises, your DC won't. Ditto if bil or his DC sell the land for development in 10 or 100 years. They will be the ones to benefit, not dh or your DC.

Please support dh in not being shafted again. Bil is looking at this long term whilst wanting to benefit from it short term too.
You are not being grabby, you just want fairness and you have already been bitten in this department before.

Sorry haven't read all the thread but we are in a very similar position to OP. Don't agree to anything or sign/sell anything until you are 100% happy. BIL can't do anything without your DH agreement.

there was a valuation done, as I understand from the OP's text.

By a real estate agent mate of the BIL. Totally unbiased not doubt.

otherwise you may be seen as a money grabbing bitch

There is nothing wrong with giving her DH her opinion. They will all be effected in the future if they let the BIL sell it to them for much less than it's current value.

Don't the executors have a duty to maximise the return?

The executors of your late FIL's estate (DH & BIL) are obliged to get the estate properly valued and that means having the house and land formally valued by and independent professional valuer .

The HMRC will need these details to assess inheritance tax any any other death duties. If the executors fail to do their duties diligently HMRC will take this seriously and that can have very unpleasant repercussions for the beneficiaries.

BIL can't just offer £200k to buy out your DH based on a local estate agents valuation.

It would also really be worth speaking to the planning department re outline planning permission, you may even discover someone else has already applied.

Wow, OP is getting a roasting here. Why is the OP being greedy, but the BIL, who seems to want to pay the bare minimum for his brother's share, isn't? Why does it have to be all his way? OP has said he's not prepared to buy the house with use of the land, only if he can BUY all the land too. Doesn't sound much like sentiment is his only driving force.

In your shoes OP, I'd prefer to get more evaluations, by an agent of your choosing, if only to avoid possible resentment in the future.

I agree with grapejuicerocks wholeheartedly, good post.

Can't you separate the house and the land and he can just buy the house (and have use of the land) until such a time as the issue raises its head

Oh sorry I see that's already been vetoed by the BiL.

In that case, get the house valued as if it had planning permission and ask him for half of that

Best thing to do at the moment is to do nothing. Get proper advice before you make any decisions. Your BIL cannot do anything without your DH's agreement. If he is trying to rush your DH or putting pressure on him I'd smell a rat.

You need at least 2 independent valuations to get a feel for the value of the property. Your husband can arrange these himself.

Sounds like your BIL is using emotional blackmail to get his own way. Nothing wrong with what he wants to do but he has to fair to the other parties involved if that's what he really wants.

Look at it another way, your DH is worried about family relations, how's he going to feel if he gets shafted again? It could also lead to a family rift. It's not just BILs view that's important here given that there is history of underhand dealing.

Go slowly and let head rule heart. You are not being greedy just cautious.

I will go against the grain here OP. I don't think you are being grabby, I think you are looking at it as a financial transaction that could benefit your BiL more than your DH. I can see that you came here for advice and you have been given some good bits of advice and a lot of stick. Get it valued independently, don't trust the BiL's valuation, for all you know he could have bunged his EA mate 50 quid to value it.

As for all the posters saying it is not your money, you didn't earn it, well obviously the OP didn't earn it but she is part of the family, married to the man who got the inheritance and has children to that man. Surely the OP's kids are part of the family and deserve an equal share of their Grandfathers Estate? The fucking double standards on here amaze me sometimes.

In this village a very pretty cottage with some land has recently been sold. We looked at it because it had an attractive price and long-term development potential.
The contract included a clause which said that if the land was sold for building development in the next 50 years the vendor would be entitled to 50% of the development value. Perhaps you could do something of this sort ?

I agree with all the PP who suggest getting a proper valuation and a covenant in place in case of future sale.

My DF is currently selling his dream smallholding. Not by choice, but because he became unwell and a) can't physically manage, b) he can't drive so needs to be nearer to shops, doctors, etc. It's not impossible to think the BIL could be in the same position in the future.

By a real estate agent mate of the BIL. Totally unbiased not doubt

Do we know this or has she just said he aranged a valuation, I could be being dense but I can't see anywhere where she has said its a validation by a mate.

Also. With the first house how did the brother stich them up? It reads like all he did was obtain the money to buy the op's DH out from another family member (the father). The house was worth 40k the DH agreed to be brought out and the BIL obtained the funds to do so from FIL, I'm not sure how or why that is considered to be stiching the op's DH up.

He could have approached his DF and got the money to do the same thing, or if he couldn't then the issue is with the FIL not anybody else and given that nobody is just entitled to 20k of someone else's money just because they want it getting cross because someone won't give you it is a bit daft.

The HMRC will need these details to assess inheritance tax any any other death duties. If the executors fail to do their duties diligently HMRC will take this seriously and that can have very unpleasant repercussions for the beneficiaries.

That is a very good point. If HMRC decide the property was undervalued by the beneficiaries they may later come after OP's DH and BIL for inheritance tax! This gives OP's DH a really good reason for getting the property valued properly rather than by an estate agent of BIL's choosing.

The contract included a clause which said that if the land was sold for building development in the next 50 years the vendor would be entitled to 50% of the development value.

Gosh, I'd run a mile from that sort of agreement. If you want future returns on the property, then hold on to it. Once you sell it, you no longer have any rights to the property.

BIL won't entertain the thought of Dh and him keeping half each That plus he wants to make improvements but only if he owns the whole thing, plus all the land. Your BIL is pissing me off.

He doesn't get to call it. He may have to compromise. Unless the terms of the will stipulate that one of them get to keep it all in tact, then the whole thing may have to be sold.

Get some proper legal and property advice. Be informed.

Fascinating thread.

OP has every right to be involved in the decisions of the inheritance. It impacts her family now and in the future.

I would certainly be seeking a few more professional valuations, but if some valuations are for the property "as it stands" as a small holding, and others are for the property cognisant of its development value, then they might be quite different.

Since you seem reasonably sure BIL wants to live in the property as it stands, I don't see how he could be asked him to buy your DH out on the basis of the larger, development potential / with planning permission value.

I think there is much merit in selling to him for the "as it stands" value, and having an overage agreement drawn up that continues across to the next generation, if that's possible.

MidniteScribbler well, we did run a mile when we realised why such a lovely place was for sale at such a good price.

The principle could still be applied to the OP's part of the inheritance though.

As someone else has said, if DH lets BIL buy him out now he's signing away an appreciating asset even if OP's ideas about planning permission aren't right

Well, that's true, but not of concern since there's nothing stopping the OP's DH investing their £200k in another appreciating asset of their choice.

And tbf, if the house plus 8 acres are worth approx £400k, then the property is likely to be in an area where house price inflation tends to be lower. Better returns may likely be found elsewhere.

I don't think you're being grabby, one more voice saynig I agree with all the PP who suggest getting a proper valuation and a covenant in place in case of future sale. If BIL and his children really never intend to build on it, all well and good but you'll have no recourse if in 10 or 20 years he changes his mind and makes a tidy profit. I'd be inclined to have DH hold onto his half, and build yourselves a house on it personally.