To put inherited house up for auction

[Boxiboxi21]

Been waiting for my sibling to buy out my share the property for the last three months. Originally i wanted it all done by auction as the property is in a poor state of repair. My sibling got their solicitor to assure me it would be all done by February to avoid bills accruing too high (Council Tax kicks in now, utilities etc.). There has been no proof of funds and no timeline for completion since, despite me asking several times. I suspect sibling is struggling to raise another mortgage to buy me out.
I have told sibling's side that I'm going to reconsider putting the property up for auction again this week if I don't get evidence of a mortgage offer and satisfied lender requirements. As administrator I have to maximise the value of the estate so the mounting bills and uncertainty is making me feel uncomfortable.
Is 3 months long enough to wait?

Why are you talking to ‘siblings side’ and not sibling? I think putting the house up for auction without consultation sounds like quite an aggressive move.

Three months is not that long in the scheme of things. Maybe there are issues with the survey or maybe they are waiting for a drop in interest rates.

Are you and your sibling the only beneficiaries?

@Darker sibling wanted all communication to go through their solicitor. I've copied them into all emails too.
Originally sibling agreed to have house up for auction but then changed their mind when they thought it'd be possible to buy me out.
We're the only beneficiaries, and the estate is small.

3 months is a really tight schedule to secure and complete on a house. Do you not have a relationship with your sibling? Could you not offer for them to take over the costs of the house in view of the situation?

Would your sibling sign an agreement for the costs of delay to be taken out of their share of the Estate (assuming they are a beneficiary) so the delay is not costing the whole Estate?

If they are not happy with that point out that the other beneficiaries would not be happy about having to bear costs relating to an extended delay.

If they did sign such an agreement I’d still place a back stop date to completion so that this dos not run on for years. Say give them 6 months and estimate and advise the extra council tax, heat and light, insurance and any maintenance costs that may crop up between now and then.

If no to an agreement I’d give 1 month and then off to auction.

Thanks all. The searches etc. have come back from their side. Apparently theyre just waiting of the lender decision. But I've been told we're waiting of that decision for months now, surely a mortgage in principle would have been granted quickly at the very least if it was viable?

A mortgage in principle is just that tho- nothing concrete. My mortgage took months to come through. We were well within budget, standard jobs etc, absolutely nothing fancy. Perhaps it’s just a waiting game. Do you think you’ll get more money putting it up for auction?

@Pippa12 sibling is buying me out for half the minimum reserve auction price, so it would potentially go for more at auction.

Is that what’s driving your thought process? You don’t need to answer obviously, but your timeline is tight and I’d be keen to give my siblings slack.

Have you actually got a valuation from an Estate Agent as to what the property is worth, presumably you had to put a figure in for Probate, selling at Auction may not be your best outcome, you will avoid fees if your sibling buys the property. Up until decision is made, bills should be split 50/50.

I'd give them more time, why not?

It costs a lot to keep a house empty.

It doesn't sound like you're on good terms. I would get your solicitor to press their solicitor with a deadline and then list it if no joy.

But it would be better to be able to discuss and see what stage they are at with the mortgage, etc.

If this was a regular sale to a third party, the agent and/or solicitor would be giving the purchaser some kind of deadline to preceed, especilly if they appeared to be dragging their heels. Can you give them a clear deadline, at which point you'll have no choice but to go to auction?

The other question is - is the house now in your joint names? Or is it a probate sale, in which case are you both executors? If it's the former, or if you are both executors, you will both need to agree the sale by auction, so maybe your sibling won't do that. If you are sole executor you can sell it when you like.

I am the sole executor and I set the deadline of yesterday to respond to me with mortgage progress and a projected date for completion. Originally sibling's solicitor assured they'd have the transfer of equity sorted in advance of February so council tax etc wouldn't need to be paid.

@Boxiboxi21 Seeing as costs would be accruing on the estate due to siblings preferences and speed of responding - can they be passed onto them.

Ie council tax wouldn’t have been due if it had gone to auction when first suggested so siblings responsible as they are causing delays in the estate being dealt with?

So you've set a deadline which they didn't comply with, and you're now accruing extra costs because of this. I would make this clear to your sibling's solicitor, and tell them that therefore you're going to move forward with the auction. I assume that an aucion will take some weeks to organise, so if your sibling can proceed before then, that's fine, otherwise the auction will go ahead.

My only hesitation would be how this impacts your relationship with sibling? It sounds like you don't communicate anyway, so maybe this is not a problem, but if you'd like to maintain a good relationship with them for any reason, or if you'd actually like to help your sibling get on the property ladder, then I'd consider holding off for a bit longer.

You've given them every opportunity. I think its reasonable to now proceed to auction.

Thanks @MathsMum3 . Sibling already has a mortgage with their OH and this would be a 2nd mortgage to buy me out and renovate. Tbh they've lost my trust - I won't go into backstory but they reneged on a previous agreement and went against our mum's last wishes. I don't think they've got lender agreement personally and am concerned this is a stalling tactic.

Selling to your sibling shouldn't be to your detriment. If you sell to them it should be at half market value, not half the starting auction price. They should also be paying associated costs of delay if you could avoid those by marketing it now.

Agreement in principle should be really quick. Its a soft footprint (so doesn't appear on a credit file) and doesn't cost anything to obtain. IMO there is no reason this can't be provided if they are proceedable. A binding mortgage offer on the other hand can take 3 months to issue depending how complex the case is.

They might be struggling to get a 2nd mortgage. They tightened the rules after the financial crash and it can be quite difficult, depending on affordability.

YANBU OP.

Your sister has had more than enough time to sort this out. Will she be clobbered for higher stamp duty as technically a second property. I wonder if she didn’t factor that in.

So you've set a deadline which they didn't comply with, and you're now accruing extra costs because of this. I would make this clear to your sibling's solicitor, and tell them that therefore you're going to move forward with the auction. I assume that an aucion will take some weeks to organise, so if your sibling can proceed before then, that's fine, otherwise the auction will go ahead

This

Have you seen any proof of availability of funds, @Boxiboxi21?

It's what estate agents request and I'd do the same, with another deadline of a week to produce it
At least that would be another doubt removed (or not)

Typo

You’re being unreasonable .

Do you have a conveyancer acting for the sale? You don’t need to see the source of funds as you’re not acting for your sibling. They are also not in control of how long it takes their lender to issue the mortgage offer.

The property might not meet the reserve if it’s in high need of repair.

An auction only means you’re like to get a cash transaction. You’ll still need to spend more money as you’ll need to provide searches up front to avoid delays.

Also on average a freehold transaction takes 8-10 weeks so your 3 months imposition would be acceptable.

@Helpmefindmysoul your post doesn't make sense. How am I being unreasonable if I've waited longer than the average transaction?

Surely seeing evidence of source of funds is needed for a transfer of equity. My conveyancer has been slack in insisting on seeing this: it's been me chasing it up each time.

Starting over isn’t going to get you a quicker turnaround. You’ll have upfront costs on an auction so that’s not maximising the estate? You may not even get any interest if the property is in a poor state of repair.

Your solicitor is slack because unless he is acting for your sibling they will not and should not be privy to the source of funds / evidence of this. A seller does not have sight of MO.

If your sibling is purchasing at lower than market value and from a relative that will also need to be reported to their lender.

If you want to withdraw then do so but many transactions are taking much longer at present.