Property after someone dies

[Linnet]

I don’t know If there is an easy answer to these questions, it’s possible the answer is, it will depend what their Will says.

A married couple own 4 properties, 2 in England and 2 abroad. It’s possible that all 4 are in joint names but it might be that only 3 of them are. 1 of the properties in England, most likely in joint names, as it was bought after they married, was at some point used to raise funds for other things, they might have remortgaged against it?

If one of the couple dies what happens to the properties?

Do the properties form part of the deceased persons estate? Or Does the surviving spouse inherit them all, if they’re in joint names?

What happens to the outstanding mortgages, especially the one on the property which was borrowed against to raise funds? Does the surviving spouse carry on paying that debt or would the properties have to be sold to pay off any mortgages? Or does it all just depend on what the will might say?

Also if you pay to look at a Will after probate, which I understand can take months to go through, does anyone get told you’ve done this, I.e the surviving spouse?

Thanks for any help.

It may depend on the inheritance laws of where ever the properties are abroad. In England it does not necessarily default to the joint owner unless the will specifies it or in the absence of a will and they are a spouse. Even then it may not be outright.

If they're held as joint tenants then ownership automatically transfers to the other person, regardless of the will. If they are owned as tenants in common, then the proportion the deceased owns will form part of their estate and be passed to whoever it says in the will.

Property abroad probably subject to that country's rules. Any mortgages should be covered by life insurance. If not then new owner will need to continue to pay mortgage assuming mortgage company agrees.

I don't think anyone is notified if someone searches for a will.

Once probate has been granted a will is a public document and anyone can apply for a copy. No one gets automatically informed.

You can find out who owns any property in the UK from the land registry for a small fee (£3) and the details of that will tell you whether the owners are joint tenants or tenants in common. If they are joint tenants then there is no restriction placed in "Section B Proprietorship Register" and that means that when the first joint tenant dies the second person becomes the sole owner and the property does not form part of the estate of the deceased. If they are Tenants in Common there is a restriction in Section B and the portion of property owned by the deceased forms part of the estate. You can do this before anyone dies.

There may or may not be a similar process for the overseas properties depending on the country.

Thank you for your replies.

So if the person who died first wanted to leave money to people in their will and they were tenants in common with the other owner, would the properties have to be sold to raise the money to pay out to beneficiaries?

Or could they leave their half of the property to someone if they wanted to?

I might look into the land registry records, again does anyone know if anyone is notified if someone looks up these records?

Even with tenants in common the person who died may have left the surviving spouse a life interest in the property, specifically so they don't have to sell up

No notification of those searches. It could be left to someone else other than spouse, with a life interest assuming they did not want to force a sale or make the surviving spouse homeless. If left to spouse the iht allowance accumulates on second death.

So if the person who died first wanted to leave money to people in their will and they were tenants in common with the other owner, would the properties have to be sold to raise the money to pay out to beneficiaries?

You can't give a legacy of something that you don't own. So if they are tenants in common then the deceased can leave the ownership of their half of the house to someone, or they can specify that certain assets should be sold and the proceeds left to someone, but they can't specify in a will that a property they only own half of must be sold. The new owner (the beneficiary) could theoretically apply for a court order that the property should be sold so that they can have their inheritance in cash but the courr wouldn't necessarily agree.

So theoretically someone could end up owning half a property with the surviving spouse owning the other half?

@Linnet

So theoretically someone could end up owning half a property with the surviving spouse owning the other half?

Yes, that can happen.

If this happened does this mean both parties would have to agree if the property was to be sold?

@Linnet

If this happened does this mean both parties would have to agree if the property was to be sold?

Yes. If they could not agree, the party wanting to sell would have to take the matter to court to try and force a sale.

Yes that's how it works.

In the meantime if there are repairs and maintenance needed on the house then the two owners have joint responsibilities for that

Hi, me again with another few questions.

So if the properties are joint tenants this means the surviving spouse inherits the other half. The surviving spouse also inherits all of the deceased persons personal possessions. This surely means that there is then no estate to be shared out? Unless they have mentioned specific items of theirs in the Will to be left to certain people?

If the above happens with the properties and possessions am I right in thinking that there is no need to apply for probate? And the Will won’t become a public document?

But, If the deceased person has their own separate bank account will the surviving spouse need to apply for probate to access the money in that account?

Thanks again for your help

Being joint tenants only affects the property. The deceased's estate in that situation consists of any personal bank accounts, any shares they owned and other personal possessions. Whether there is a need for probate depends on whether the financial institutions involved are happy for the estate to be settled without probate. For banks, that depends on the amount in the bank account. Different banks have different rules.