Please or to access all these features

Add post

Watch this thread

Save thread

Start a new thread

Flip thread

Hide thread

My feed

Active Unanswered threads

Getting started FAQ's

Unanswered threads Acronyms Talk guidelines

Hide shortcut buttons

Talk

Legal matters

Mumsnet has not checked the qualifications of anyone posting here. If you have any legal concerns we suggest you consult a solicitor.

Flip

1 2

Original poster

Inheriting part of a property

37 replies

Linnet · 19/06/2022 23:21

Fil has left his half of a property to dh and his brother. Fil’s wife (2nd marriage) has a life interest.

Does anyone know if dh and his brothers names get put on the deeds now or will that only happen when the wife dies?

The property also has a substantial mortgage on it and is rented out to tenants at the moment. Will the rent being paid by the tenants continue to pay down the mortgage (we’re assuming that at least part of the rent is used for this purpose) or will dh and his brother be expected to pay towards the mortgage at this time?

OP posts:

whereamu · 21/06/2022 15:00

Is the wife living in the house?
You mention tenants - is it an investment property?

whowhatwerewhy · 21/06/2022 15:14

I would of thought there would of been life insurance to cover the mortgage .

Original poster

Linnet · 21/06/2022 15:58

whereamu · 21/06/2022 15:00

Is the wife living in the house?
You mention tenants - is it an investment property?

No the wife doesn’t live in the property. They used to live in it, then they moved back to an old property of theirs( that they used to rent out) and tried to sell this one. When it didn’t sell they rented it out and it now has tenants in it. The wife lives in the old property which according to the title deeds was joint owners and has gone directly to her.

OP posts:

Original poster

Linnet · 21/06/2022 15:59

titchy · 21/06/2022 14:52

But whose name is on the mortgage and how much is owed? Late FIL and wife joint mortgage, late FIL on own or wife on own? That's fairly crucial id have thought. It could be that if the mortgage company is owed purely by FIL, and secured only half a house, then potentially the estate could be bankrupt.

Both their names are in the title deeds. I don’t know if they’re both on the mortgage but I’d have thought they would be as they bought the property after they married.

OP posts:

Original poster

Linnet · 21/06/2022 16:00

whowhatwerewhy · 21/06/2022 15:14

I would of thought there would of been life insurance to cover the mortgage .

We thought so too. But since the letter from the solicitor specifically mentions that there is an outstanding mortgage on the property we’re guessing that there isn’t or surely it would have paid it off.

OP posts:

whowhatwerewhy · 21/06/2022 16:20

You need to speak to the solicitor. My best guess is maybe he had life insurance to pay his half off and outstanding mortgage is his wife's , but that's a wild guess .

I can't see how they can force you H and BIL to take on a mortgage. For one the estate should be sold to pay any debts, secondly not everyone can afford to mortgage.

Are you on good terms with the wife ?
Who gets the rent ?
A life interest will is to protect the surviving partner from being made homeless but in this case she has a home so it might need to be sold to pay the outstanding mortgage.
You can apply to the probate office for a copy of the will.

Original poster

Linnet · 21/06/2022 16:35

There is definitely no way we can afford to pay a mortgage on a property in central London.

We’re not on good terms with the wife. While FIL was Ill she wouldn’t answer phone calls or messages, we had to fight to visit him in hospital as she didn’t want anyone going to see him apart from her.
Since he died she has cut all of his family off, blocked us and won’t answer messages or phone calls.
Because of this we’re quite glad that a solicitor is dealing with it.

I think under the terms of the life interest the wife gets the rent that the tenants pay, dh and bil have no claim to that.

I understand about the life interest, it’s a good idea that it’s there to make sure the surviving spouse is not left homeless, but like you say she has another property.

There is nothing on the probate site yet, so it doesn’t appear to have gone through probate yet, but when it appears we’ll be getting a copy of the Will.

OP posts:

whowhatwerewhy · 21/06/2022 16:48

She sounds delightful. Definitely speak to the solicitor, I would also ask if you have the right to periodically check the property over .
She's legally obligated for the upkeep of the house . I don't think it would be unreasonable for you to want to visually inspect from time to time .

PizzaPizza56 · 21/06/2022 18:05

OP ask the solicitor for a copy of the Will. Even if they won't give you a copy of the full document on the basis that it's private until it's been through probate, they should still be able to give you a redacted version showing just the clauses that mention DH.

Loobyloo68 · 21/06/2022 18:15

When my father died without a will, (he was young when he died), my mum had divorced him. As I was the eldest child his house and the 16k mortgage was transferred to me. I didn't at any point apply for a mortgage.

OVO1410 · 21/06/2022 20:14

@Linnet I am the beneficiary of a trust made by my late DM leaving me half her property. The other half is owned by her DH and he has a lifetime interest in the property too. So this is my understanding of how it works from the meetings we had with the solicitor...

If the mortgage is in joint names, and your FIL's DW is going to continue paying it alone, then your DH can't replace your FIL on the deeds. Your FIL's DW will have to have permission from the lender to continue with the mortgage (she will have to tell them that your FIL has died) and they will insist that the names on the mortgage account match those on the deeds. So the only way for your DH to replace your FIL on the deeds would be for him to be added to the mortgage, but this would not be a good idea as if your FIL's DW then defaulted on the mortgage, your DH would be liable for any debt too. What will happen is that the land registry will add a restriction so that your FIL's DW can't sell the property without your DH's involvement.

The solicitor will calculate the value of the property (at the date of death) minus the remaining mortgage (at the date of death) and your DH will inherit a quarter of this amount, but as a percentage of the property as the property will have likely changed in value at the point when it's sold and your DH inherits his share. If FIL's DW wants to continue ownership of the property then it's up to her to continue to pay the mortgage on it. If she defaults on the mortgage, your DH's share is protected and the lender can only come after FIL's DW's share. Same if she goes into a care home for any reason, they can only take her half of the property to fund that. The lifetime's interest means that she can live in the property until she dies and make any income on it as she sees fit (so the current rent will continue to go to her). She can also sell the property and invest the money into another property if she wishes.

OVO1410 · 21/06/2022 20:32

@Linnet Also regarding the life insurance, it can be set up to benefit the spouse rather than the estate. If so, FIL’s DW will get the life insurance money and can do with it as she likes. The remaining mortgage is now her debt alone, so she could use it to pay that off. However, if the monthly rental income covers the monthly mortgage payment, she may just pocket the life insurance money as my DM’s DH did.

Flip

1 2