We are screwed aren't we- inheritance?

[Worldwide21]

I live with my DH in a house with my inlaws- they own the house. My DH has lived there all his life and I have lived with there since we got married. The house is worth about £700000 currently and we were told that all of it, bar £100000 which would go to DH's sister, would go to us. The current will states this.

As a result we have invested a lot of our own money into this house, including a £50000 loft conversion 10 years ago as well as the majoirty of the bills, sacrificing the chance to move out.

My MIL has a volatile mind and may try and change the will after my FIL passes away- he is very frail. Do we have any protections in law if this happens given our investments in the house and the expectation that the bulk of it would go to DH.
Also would I or my children potentially be completely disinherited if my DH suddenly passed away first? My MIL and FIL are unwilling to change the will by putting the house in a trust now and we understand that care home fees may swallow up some of the house if it were needed.

Sorry for the long post.

This is bizarre

Iht should not be able issue if it's a main property being left to direct descendant, that gives £1m tax free allowance (but look it all up etc)

If FIL needs care, and MIL is alive, then his fees will be assesssed based upon his income and savings only. They wont look at the home while another partner is alive. So if he has savings / investments etc (they will assume half of all totals between the two of them, plus pensions, etc) but ignore the property. So care home fees may not be an issue.

The issue will come if the surviving parent needs care - so if MIL needs care.

Similarly she COULD, theoretically, throw you out.

saying that your SIL hasnt had to deal with them doesnt mean she wont believe she has a right to 50% of any estate. Caring does not equal inheritance. Not in law and, in many cases, not in practice.

Can I ask does SIL know and have you had any independant finacial planning advice

This is a legal board not AIBU. Clearly there was a discussion and arrangement within the family and plans were made on that basis and now OP is asking if she has any protections should that be changed. Whether it is fair or not isn't the question and I'm sure there are more factors at play than she put into her post.

@Worldwide21 I'm not a lawyer but if fils half has gone into trust then my understanding that money is then protected as per his will.

Your mil will be free to change her will however she wants or it can be taken to be used for care home fees there are exceptions for when the money for care home won't be counted as capital, is this a concern or is it more inheritance?

If your MIL is in her right frame of mind there is little you can do to stop her changing the will. I know there is something about paying bills can give you an interest in the house but my understanding is it's complex and very costly. If she looks serious about changing the will then you do need legal advice. Could you be given a lifetime interest in the property even if mil wants to give more money to sil?

Also please make sure you are protected should your DH die before you. If the money passes straight to your children you could be a precarious position especially if you are not the trustee of their account if it happens before they are of age.

Who is MILS power of attorney and is the sister likely to be litigious, if so you need to be careful. I know two different families torn apart by legal cases as one child supported the parents and the other felt they took advantage, it was awful for all sides and very expensive.

Why is DH sister only getting 100k when the house is worth 700k?

seems bizarre

Where is the detriment to the op, living rent free for 20 years and spending only £50k on a loft conversion?

I suppose she will be OK if hey have saved all of the money they would have spent on a mortgage and can buy a house now in order to 'catch up'.

I just can't imagine living so precariously in a house I have no rights to.

Apparently because she’s wealthy and has several properties of her own.

You must have some good savings having paid so little over a decade. If these are invested wisely you might be ok. As it stands, if they both died in the next couple of years, you have an IHT bill (if they own assets more than the house - if they don’t you may be under the £1m allowance that they share).

wills can always be changed, no one should ever rely on one not least due to elderly care, but if this happens to you, you have been lucky enough to live inexpensively til now so probably have a cushion you can fall back on. And if you don’t, get started on pensions for the tax efficiency.

@Toastoftheton Financial is SIL and DH and health is DH and myself. Therefore there could be potential litigation in the future as SIL may end up contesting even though she has given no indication she will thus far. I am worried that I won't even get my DH's share and will be turfed out if he dies first.

Thanks for everyone's advice. We have a lot to think about and will go to a lawyer asap.

Would an open conversation with dsis achieve anything? In the sense of planning all of it- end of life, potential care, the house etc.

Or will SIL sue? Be careful there. You could (all three of you) end up with nothing if things get angry.

Also - seems to me that you and dh need a Will to cover you in case anything happens to him.

@InterestQ We haven't got a great pension unfortunately as we always intended for the property my DH and I own to be the bulk of our pension but we may have to move into that in the future if MIL changes the will. However we are putting into our pension more aggressively now and my father has some savings in my name so hopefully we will have something to fall back on.

@Justasec321 We do have a will stating that DH's assets go to me if he dies but it doesnt state explicitly in IL will what happens if DH dies.

It seems a bit much to expect 85% of the value of the home you haven't purchased just because you live there and contribute something. 70/30 with your DH's sister sounds fairer. Maybe I missed something.

You have lived rent free for years yet you are complaining about SIL.

You own another property.

You are hardly poor are you.

I feel sorry for SIL and I imagine the will (rightly in my opinion) will be contested if she gets 100k and you 700.

Also what did you wallpaper with costing tends of thousands? Gold leaf

I am worried that I won't even get my DH's share and will be turfed out if he dies first.

Why would you think you should get so much more than the IL own daughter in this scenario.

Talk about money grabbing.

How much was the house worth when it was agreed SIL would get 100K?

If I were you I’d plan not to inherit any of this house, it may all go in care fees if both MIL and FIL need care, you just can’t rely on it.
So plan not to get any money and if you do it will be a bonus.

Does sil KNOW?

That seems very important. If she knows and is fine with it then all is fine.

What would happen if MIL says to sil (in passing) “they won’t do a thing unless I put them on the deeds”. Will she read that as a land grab, an ousting, coercion?

seems to me like dh and dsis really need some transparency.

Well hopefully, if you’re not in your 60s, you can tighten the belt a bit while you live there and plough a good solid amount into the pensions (both of you) and redress the balance. If you get the bulk of the house value as planned, consider it a bonus and if you don’t, you knew enough to shore up your position.

It’s good to be cautious. You can fix this without starving, so plan it out with your DH and you’ll feel much less stress over it.

SMART.

This op.

Who exactly would you sue? Because up until the actual day your MIL dies, the house belongs to her. You can’t sue a dead person.
Put aside the fact that your SIL is wealthier than you. That’s completely irrelevant. You have benefitted from living in someone else’s home all your married life. Yes, you may have paid for building work, and paid bills, but wherever you lived you would have had bills to pay. The difference is that you’d also have had to pay rent or a mortgage. You say the house is worth £700k. Have you paid out that much over the years? Ignoring the bills, how much in total do you think you’ve paid out?

Also this.

Also - if sil owns a few properties it would imply that she had a head for business?

will she take that lying down - if she is unaware of the agreement?

There is something distasteful
about this thread.

you and your husband have lived your life in the expectation that you will get his parents house.

you have lived rent free, and while you have spent money on the house - it sounds like it has been for your benefit rather than your in laws. Covering some bills is what normal adults do. You avoided the big expenses of home ownership - most people have to pay more than £50k for their home. Decorating and paying bills are completely normal - even in rented accommodation.

you claim your sister in law doesn’t need to inherit because she is already wealthy. But most parents want to treat their children equally.

these aren’t your parents - yet is feels like your are completely focused on getting their house to the detriment of their daughter.

maybe your sister in laws knows all about this and is relaxed. I don’t think I would be.

Who are the trustees?

And it's illegal to put a house into trust to avoid paying care home fees.