Aunt has died and her friend reluctant to leave her house

[JellyBook]

Our aunt died late November and she had a friend staying when she died. The friend lives overseas and doesn’t want to go (yet, she says).

Just getting a bit nervy about whether she will decide to stay even longer, and what problems that might cause. She has been left a lump sum in the will. The house and belongings are left to the estate to be sold and shared amongst various family members. Aunty leaves no spouse or children.

Do we have anything to worry about or should we just proceed with probate, sale of house and just tell her you need to make arrangements to leave?

so the estate is now paying the gas electric, water, rates.

no absolutely get her out, today.

she will (and can) squat. Don't be tempted to be too nice as shes being "helpful". She is helpful as it suits her staying there, she can find somewhere else she cannot try to claim as her own,like a hotel room!

What DO you actually know about their relationship/friendship OP?

She was your Aunt's friend who thought enough of her to leave her a lump sum, she might also be grieving for her friend.

As it's hardly likely you have probate yet, you (executor) do not actually own the house..... is there really any harm in letting her stay for a short while, why don't you agree timescales instead of getting heavy handed?

FWIW many years ago, my landlord (i was just renting a room) was killed in a car accident, it turned out he didn't own the house and was subletting!
The owner let me stay on for a few weeks, we just shook hands on it, not everyone is out to put one over on someone else.

The law on "squatting" in domestic property has been changed and - basically - whilst you used to be able to acquire title by "adverse possession" [after 10 years!] this is no longer the case.

It is the duty of the executor to deal with everything including [in this case] selling the house. This is not a swift process! Take advice from a solicitor but - in the end - the simple fact is that the friend must be asked to leave. There will be no need to give any form of "formal notice" as she has no legal right to be there. I would suggest a structured timescale stating what shall happen and when.

@JellyBook

@jasjas1973

I have to say I was thinking that the OP should do what she can to remove the Lady, but your post has really made me think.
We all spend so much time worrying about everything that could go wrong ( which would be a small percentage likelihood) we forget about about being more compassionate and optimistic.

Are you afraid of some sort of nasty confrontation? She's been there some time now and is taking advantage. This woman is not your responsibility and she is now edging into CF territory. You'd think she would have moved out or gone home as soon after the death of your aunt as possible. Air b'n'b, stay with friend ?

You need to be firm, face to face tell her you need vacant possession to sell, sort aunt's belongings etc Take supportive relatives with you and take no nonsense. Evict and change locks.

It will take months for the probate to go through, so do the probate and tell her she needs to leave, it doesn’t need to be ASAP, but certainly quick enough to start preparing the house for whatever you are doing with it.

When does she Gad the return ticket to her country?

There is no right to squat, the law was changed a few years ago. Agree tell her to leave, if necessary the executor needs to write and then get it cleared.

You might need to check she has no access to bank cards etc and got money out

It’s been almost 2 months. You need her out NOW.
What’s the position with the house insurance?
Remember that as soon as someone dies, they can no longer legally give permission so for instance, you can’t drive a dead person’s car or presumably, live in their house.

If I went to stay with a friend - one I was close enough to to stay with, and close enough to be in their will - and the friend - could be a lifelong friend in presumably older people, deep bonds - died while I was there I'd be in a lot of shock and very upset.
Is she upset OP? As far as you can tell?

I'd be in a lot of shock and very upset.

So would I. But I wouldn't think the best way to deal with my shock was to start squatting in my friend's house for several months, to the upset and inconvenience of her family.

The OP hasn't told us how old her aunt was or the friend is. It's not necessarily the case that the friend is elderly or particularly vulnerable.

Crikey this was your Aunt's friend who she cared enough about to live with and left money for in her will, give her some slack, she was obviously very close. I can't believe people are being so cold, her living situation has been turned on it's head by this.

When my gran died, the solicitor advised that keys should be removed from everyone except the executors as nobody else had a right to enter the property.

You need to give her a deadline to leave by so that you can start clearing the house ready for sale and do anything that you want to do to it if necessary.

I hope that you have removed all valuables from the property.

It is the job of the executor to secure the property and possessions so if that's you OP, you'll need to take care of it.

As PP have said, I also wondered if there was a bit more to this than you are saying especially if the friend is in the will. However it is likely that the house/contents will have to be dealt with (if not sold) before any payment can be made.

Hope it goes well OP.

Prinny she was visiting, not living?

This is making me review my will I think! Do I need to state the property should remain empty or only be occupied by the 2 main beneficiaries? There are small amounts left to other people.

I would agree with keys being removed from everyone except the executor.

I'm sorry OP, the number of distressing things that come up after you lose someone, and this one top. Ugh.

If her lump sum is sizeable the explanation that she can only have it once the house has been sold might speed things up?

@JellyBook
That was my immediate thought. The guest may be a bereaved partner, therefore the the way forward needs to be with compassion and care.

All these 'she's a cheeky fucker taking advantage' posts aren't taking in consideration there may have been a loving relationship that no-one else was ware of.

I agree it would be callous to ask the friend to leave days after the death of her friend, but this is nearly 2 months on.

An average person would head home or to another friends after a week or two surely - a month max? To just stay on for free, racking up the gas & electricity bills with no signs of going anywhere and (I assume from the OP) no request to rent the house or pay towards anything is awkward AF for the family.

My gut reaction is she's expressed concerns about where she's going to go & someone's said in kindness 'theres no rush to leave' so she's taken it literally & bedded in.

How old is she? And is she a UK citizen. You want to make sure she’s not registered at the property to receive her pension or on local gps lists. Not to scare you, but looking at worse case scenario, there things would give her a claim on the property, especially if she then said you were making her homeless otherwise. She could say the friend was going to split the house with her instead of the lump sum, but hadn’t updated her will and her being registered at the property is her claim. Don’t put the bills in her name, but do have a frank conversation about how the bills will be paid and when she will be on her way. Tread gently, as she’s just lost her friend, but firmly as you are the executor and the house should be vacant.

This woman was known to your aunt. She may be a stranger to you how would your aunt have wanted you to treat her?

If the house is left empty then the insurance will be invalid, so actually by being there she could be quite useful to you.

I would have a formal sit-down discussion with her to find out exactly what her intentions are. It may be that you can agree that she stays for another few weeks without complication. In my experience it takes time for probate and the gathering of paperwork and given the long Christmas break I don't imagine you're ready to put the house on the market yet.

I'd put whatever agreement you reach in writing and both sign it. If it does cost you a couple of hundred for gas and electricity that's probably no more than you'd pay for a solicitor or to get the locks changed.

As others have said, she has no legal rights and staying there will not give her any, just as agreeing to house-sit for someone for a month doesn't mean that you have any tenancy or property rights.

I think more sensitivity is required than some posts here suggest - as PP have pointed out, this woman was close enough to have been left a lump sum.

Was there a planned end date to her visit as arranged between her and your aunt?

She will need to go because I think the IT has to be paid within 6 months?

What does the solicitor handling your aunt's estate advise?

Is she distressed / upset? Was she helpful, or did she deal with things, when your aunt died? is she a wider family friend?

I would give her a week or two's notice and tell her you need to deal with the paperwork for the house - the utilities companies, the Council Tax etc and for it to be 'unoccupied'.

But kindly. She might be more emotionally involved and affected than you sound!

I'm with Crotchetyquaver and thought straightaway l bet if she's still in the house she's of the mindset of the effects inside being fair game to her and she could well be helping herself to whatever personal possessions and furnishings etc which form part of the estate, that she fancies or feels she should have . You need to get in and do an inventory ASAP preferably when she's out (she's not a tenant so no right to 'quiet enjoyment' ) and as executor you can enter the property either with a key or via a locksmith if you don't have key.

When my gran died, the solicitor advised that keys should be removed from everyone except the executors as nobody else had a right to enter the property.

Yes, this is the situation we are currently in. Elderly aunt made the solicitors her executors (didn’t want to trouble us) but it meant we couldn’t even go in to her flat to get her birth certificate etc in order to register her death.

OP needs to check the legal position and then proceed kindly, but within the law. I suspect the friend shouldn’t be there at all, regardless of being close enough to be included in the will.

Don’t put the bills in her name, but do have a frank conversation about how the bills will be paid and when she will be on her way. Tread gently, as she’s just lost her friend, but firmly as you are the executor and the house should be vacant.

This is good advice.

Putting bills in someone's name is effectively giving them carte blanche to stay as long as they wish.

Ask the energy companies for the final readings and have the services cut off (give her a week). She is not your responsibility - and she isn't even claiming that she wants to stay a while in the house to feel closer to your aunt - it is just a cheap/free base for her to visit other friends from.

Let her stay with someone else.