Do you 'Expect' to Benefit from Your Parent's Will

[Pembsgirl]

My parents had nothing, so having no 'expectations' of an inheritance in years to come, I worked hard for everything I've got, but so many people own their own homes now, so am I being unreasonable in thinking that the vast majority of people these days 'expect' to benefit from their parent's Will, and wonder how they'd feel if parents left it all to people other than their children?

Expect is the wrong word. Mum has told us it’s a 50/50 split-we already own half of the house following dad’s death last year. I’ve seen the will. I know there’s a stack of money in various accounts too. However, I encourage her to spend as much as she can on herself. I neither want nor need an inheritance. If mum needs to go into a care home, everything will go on that, so there’s no ‘expectation’.

Well I think "expect" in terms of anything being divided between sibling & I, yes.

However remaining parent is self funding in a care home so there's unlikely to be much left!

Financially I am fucked due to an abusive early relationship. However I don’t get on with my parents. I had previously suggested they bypass me and go straight to the grandkids.
As much as I just can’t cope with a relationship with them, it would also be a massive and further fuck you if it came to not being in there.
Bar winning the lottery it is my only hope of getting out of this situation. But equally I can’t ‘expect’ it given our relationship or previous relatives needing care.

Both my parents will die with property and money but will not leave me a thing as the first born from their first marrage l have a full sister from this marrage younger than me and adopted out.
Second marrages give me 3 sisters and 2 brothers all these 6 will inherit but not me which explains the type of people they are.

My DM intends to leave us the house, savings etc, but if they are needed to find good later life care, then so be it. All I want is for her to be happy.

My understanding is that my parents wills do leave their estate to their children but I certainly don’t “expect” it or factor it in to my own life decisions. Anything could happen they could have to go in care homes meaning the house would be sold and nothing would be left after all. It’s their money not mine.

I knew myself and 2 siblings would inherit when my dad died 20 years ago. We got about £100k each.

No. I know my mum intends to leave myself and my two siblings something, whereas my dad intends to spend it all (probably on a boat). It would be nice, obviously, but it's no a necessity for any of us.

We have DMIL and my parents still alive. Having seen DGMIL’s care cost 1k plus per week, I fully expect what they have to mostly go on care. Not making any plans to inherit.

Interesting that most posters acknowledge that future monies may well be spent on care.

I wonder if there is an assumption that paying for care means paying for residential care. Most people stay at home & receive paid care there.
This will mean having the cash to hand to pay agency fees & the paid carers. Someone can be asset ‘rich’ but cash strapped, so may struggle to contract the home based care that is needed.

The care provision market is an imperfect one - often insufficient supply of agency/workers, insufficient skill for a fit-for-purpose service, limited opportunities to release fixed assets (e.g. sell house, release investments/savings) to pay cash for services.

Step up the family to provide ‘unpaid care’ ?
This often happens & the economic impact is taken by the generation of working family.

So, although many ppl may understandably assume that their parents wealth will be spent (well) by them so they can accept that they may inherit little or not at all, it may be turn out to be the case that the ‘giving’ is done by the other way round by the younger generation(s) in the family.

I'm hoping there will be, but planning as if there won't be. Expecting the worst and hoping for the best, so to speak.

You can't assume nowadays.

Yes, I did. "Expecting" something doesnt mean I think I have an automatic "right" to it but yes, I did expect to inherit my father's property when he died and I have done. I am an only child, I lost my mum very young and have no other family left. Its just me. So of course I "expected" to inherit as I was the only one who cared for my dad in the last years of his life and through his illness. All of his friends drifted away and never once offered to help or check on him.

I dont believe that makes me a bad person or greedy or whatever other people might be implying. I had a very rough childhood and a rough adulthood looking after both my mum and then my dad when they got ill and eventually died. My dad had a lotto savings stored up and a lot of it was used on his care. His house and the rest went to me. I expected it to - there was literally noone else it could have gone to!

I know the terms of my parents' will so I know I will inherit along with siblings. Not making any plans around it though - I prefer to make my own way.

Lot of savings not lotto lol

When I say hoping, I mean if there are funds left. I definitely know that we will benefit from both dh and my parents. We've had numerous discussions as to how best to do this.

No because I'm not in contact with them because they are abusive. I'm expecting they will leave their money to my cousins or my dcs. They only give to get something in return. I really don't want any of their money. Although I would like back the things they stole from my house.

I expect an inheritance because my parents have made provision for it in the will and are unlikely to die without leaving anything behind. It will be quite sizeable and will really enhance my pension. My husband will have an inheritance too. We will pass on to our daughter.

No.

His new wife marched an 80 year old man down the aisle to ensure we got nothing.

It would be a surprise if my parents left everything to anyone other than us kids as I can't think who else they would leave it to (unless they decided to leave it all to charity), but to be honest I don't "expect" to inherit anything because that's not important to me. What's important is that I love them and I'll be devastated to lose them when the time comes, money is the least important thing in my relationship with them.

My Dad died when I was in my 20s. I inherited from him then. I don’t expect to inherit from my Mum, as hopefully she’ll live for a lot longer. Whatever she has will be spent or go towards her care in her later years.

I don’t expect my husband to inherit from his parents either for the same reasons.

I don't think that the average person should 'expect' to inherit anything these days as most of our parent's assets are likely to go on care.

I don't think that my DC will have much of an inheritance either as my generation has been hit by the ever changing pension rules and I'm expecting to find things tight when I reach pension age. For a start, we got caught in the collapse of endowments and a lot of our early 'savings' went on dealing with that and not building up a pension. At the time DH's pension was a good final salary, non-contributory scheme which would have provided us both with a comfortable retirement but that went belly-up like a lot of company schemes.

I'm hoping that my DC, just entering the workforce, being forewarned will be better informed and better prepared.

We are not rich but ‘comfortable’, having worked for decent pensions and have never lived an extravagant lifestyle. From our pension pots we paid towards son’s wedding and gave the same amount to other two children who are single but we wanted to treat them all fairly. OH is due to inherit money from elderly, childless aunt but that will mainly be divided and given to our children. We are happy in our house and really have no expensive needs. If we have any spare money we would rather slip some to the children now, when they are saving up for a deposit than die and have them pay inheritance tax, though that is something we are currently looking into. It’s all a minefield, wills, inheritance tax and Power of Attorney. .

Most people from well-off backgrounds inherit. Most from poverty backgrounds do not. One-fifth of funerals in the UK are only paid for through a loan.

Inheritance tax means you anticipate leaving more than £375k to 3 children. That is well-off. You have over £1million to leave.

@karencantobe, thank you. By giving half the house to the children when the first one of us dies, that should mean we will be clear of inheritance tax.