Update to AIBU to refuse Aunt's fwb claim on her estate.

[Sleepneededprettyplease]

Posting here because it is where I put the first thread.

A brief summery is that my Aunt died and her FWB is trying to say that he is entitled to part of her estate because she had asked me to allow him to stay in a house she had invested in for me. Anyway if you want the full story feel free to read what I put on the first thread.

Anyway the main thing is that he is now sueing in the courts. I need a bit of a hand hold please. My lawyers have suggested getting a barristers opinion so I am just waiting for that. I wouldn't even mind if it was possible to just go to mediation but he wants the house for the rest of his life and won't consider anything else.

www.mumsnet.com/talk/am_i_being_unreasonable/5505433-aibu-to-refuse-aunts-fwb-claim-on-her-estate?utm_campaign=thread&utm_medium=share

Shocking update - I'm so sorry.

Hopefully the old codger will pop his clogs soon.

Sad to hear your update. It's an absolute joke.

TBH at this point I would go down the road of making his life difficult under the guise of maintenance on the house

I don’t see why you can’t. It’s your house. I’d go for some visits and piss him off.

Well I can check if I am allowed. However if it is doable the I will send others. There is no way I can see that entitled so and so ever again without being extremely rude.

I refuse to put myself in the position of having to even look at him.

Might manage something there but it all costs and I am getting very short of money. The lawyers fees have taken pretty much all my savings.

Would you consider going public? Of legal proceedings stop then you can't be accused of including them and it's the kind of story some papers love. Make things uncomfortable for him (and get legal experts condemning the judge!)

I wouldn't even know where to start.

It could be a little uncomfortable but might get results. My main issue would be timings. I really do need this sorted soon. I will run out of savings in 2 months max.

Sorry about the outcome OP. Might be a stupid idea but as the estate has to house him can you sell your aunts house and by a studio for him? In your name so that you can sell it when the CF does pop his clogs.

Would that give you enough for IVF?

Unfortunately it has to be equivalent. I can't just stick him in a hole. I wish I could put him on the remotest mobile home park going but...

Edited to add: if I can keep the legal fees from swallowing the proceeds from selling her main home it will pay my mortgage and give me enough for IVF.

CF’s in his 80s OP. I reckon the prospect of making a very old man homeless did for the judge. They don’t like chucking oldsters on the streets.

Is there the option of letting the house at a commercial rate, to be paid by housing benefit on CF’s behalf? Or the option of charging a lesser rent that covers your expenses, ditto?

If the judge says he’s entitled to live there via your aunt, that’s a very different issue to
you paying for it, which you will be as a landlord.

Your aunt left no instruction for you to finance him or any money for same. if it keeps going badly in court I’d push hard for the £ to be sorted out,

There is the possibility of him paying below market rent from housing benefit. It is something that I am considering but would need a bunch of safeguards built into the contract about if he stops pay / damages the house / not moving anyone else in etc etc etc.

I thought you had already tried to negotiate with him, but all he wanted was the house? Where does it leave you if he refuses a settlement? Could you represent yourself in court?

So angry for you op

Hoping the grifting old cunt drops dead very soon

I did. Hence why I am considering renting it to him.

Although the judge has applied some pressure to him to settle too.

Edited to add: I really don't feel representing myself would work at all. This is not my area of expertise.

Just wondering......was the judge male and closer in age to FWB than you @Sleepneededprettyplease ?

Yes and listen primarily to the only male barrister. Barely let our barrister talk (female).

You can get a tenancy contract that puts hard caveats for CF in with no worries. Include a clause on no sub-letting.

Given CF has form for agreeing to and then not paying rent, you can push hard for direct payments by the DWP HB team to you to be part of the contract.

He has to agree to it for now as he has mental capacity, but that shouldn’t be a problem. The arrangement won’t affect his other tenancy provisions.

i’d focus on getting this fixed because the prospect of evicting CF after he doesn’t pay isn’t appealing. He’s very old and you might well get another judge who won’t do it.

I’d also find a way somehow to let CF’s family know it’s your house. He might try and borrow against it or leave it to someone, both of which should be impossible, but would entail stressy phone calls after he tries it.

These are some of my worries. I am taking advice from a lettings solicitor to check how to build a LOT of conditions in to a potential contract.

How do the numbers work out

your aunts estate may be sued for his support.
but that doesn’t include the house he lived in.
so you can evict him from your house and wait for him to sue the estate.
if the estate runs out of money so be it.the second house is still yours. You can sell that as its separate.

I have followed this since the beginning but I’ve forgotten a few things. Does the FWB have family? If he does not and dies, you won’t be responsible for his funeral or any arrangements will you, apart from him being removed from your property?

If his health deteriorates and he has to leave the property and taken into care, will that then be an end to his ‘entitlement’ to live in the property - or will you have to wait until he expires?

I'm so sorry you are in this situation. It is all shades of wrong. I've just seen that you believe if you get him out you will have a duty to house him. Is there any reason you can't install a caravan in the grounds of the property, or elsewhere, and offer him in that? Then if he refuses surely he'll have made himself homeless and he's not your problem because you've offered an alternative? The law is clearly an ass but surely you don't have to provide equivalent accommodation?

I have just read Binglebong's reply. You could contact the local BBC and Itv news, local and national papers with you looking upset. Once you are featured the local people who reached the decision may change their minds. I am really annoyed with the people who have let him live in the house. Is it worth contacting Rip Off Britain as they would have legal experts.

I really don’t see how contacting the local news would help OP. There’s a fair likelihood the story would be spun as “woman gifted a home wants to kick out 80-something man”

A judgement was reached in court, it’s a nonsensical judgement but it will only be altered by additional legal process, which understandably OP cannot afford.

Would you be able to stay there for a week and then phone a locksmith as soon as he goes out. It just is not fair.

She does; she says Unfortunately it has to be equivalent