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Original poster

He now owns the house. Is there anything we can do?

89 replies

Toomuchgrief23 · 20/05/2023 23:54

MIL sadly passed away 6weeks ago.
She and my FIL separated over 30yrs ago, started divorce proceedings but recently realised they didn't have the decree absolute. FIL wanted to remarry and so was eager for the divorce to be finalised quickly so suggested 'sorting' the house at a later stage, and whilst there was lots of talk about this in recent years and solicitors appointed and paid, nothing seems to have been done.
We are now in the situation where he owns 100% of my MIL's home and is suggesting that it is split 3 ways between him, DH and SIL, however is very clear that final say will be his and this is not something he has to do. DH and SIL were happy enough with this arrangement
SIL wants to buy the house, but tonight FIL has said that it will be put on the market as he has an idea of a minimum amount he wants from the sale (more than 1/3 of valued price) and doesn't seem to care that the family want it to remain within the family due to sentimental reasons.

Is there anything that can be done in this scenario as legally FIL is the owner? If DH and SIL were to fight it in court is it likely to go anywhere?

Any advice would be much appreciated, we are all still grieving and this is the last thing we want to be dealing with at the moment.

OP posts:
Original poster
Toomuchgrief23 · 20/05/2023 23:57

P.s - DH was recently told by a solicitor that it is documented that FIL said at the time of the divorce that there were no financial matters or assets to be resolved, which would have been a lie.

Is there a loophole around this potentially? Would this in someway invalidate their divorce and therefore his marriage? I appreciate he'd still own the house but may be less likely to make certain decisions if it could be returned to court on this basis?

OP posts:
Fiddlerdragon · 20/05/2023 23:57

It won’t sell for a 3rd more than what it’s worth. So surely just wait it out?

Original poster
Toomuchgrief23 · 21/05/2023 00:13

Oh I think that's me not being clear.
It's been valued at a certain amount which he had agreed would be split 3 ways between him and his 2 children. SIL is able to buy for the valued price. However, he has now said that he has a minimum amount in mind that he wants from the sale of the house, which is more than his share (3rd) of the valued price, so he wants to put it on the market as there is a chance it would sell for more than the valued price therefore giving him more money.

OP posts:
Haywirecity · 21/05/2023 00:17

Can't she get a mortgage for the two thirds she doesn't own?

Original poster
Toomuchgrief23 · 21/05/2023 00:28

Yes so that's what she planned on doing but can only do that for the valued price and probably wouldn't want to pay much more than its valued as it will need a lot of work. However, there is a lot of demand for houses in the area so someone else may be willing to pay a bit more for it.

OP posts:
Original poster
Toomuchgrief23 · 21/05/2023 00:30

I think my question was more around him owning 100% despite not contributing to the mortgage, upkeep, etc for over 30yrs. Is there likely to be any other outcome if this was challenged in court or is it oretty clear cut?

OP posts:
Geppili · 21/05/2023 00:34

He is her husband. Clear cut.

Babyroobs · 21/05/2023 00:38

Sounds like he's being more than generous ? Would mil have been able to buy him out of the house at the time of the split ? If not then surely she has benefitted a lot by being able to stay there for so long in a house that she may otherwise have not been able to afford. I can also see that he will have benefitted from the increase in house value. How does he own 100% of the house, surely half belonged to mil, and so perhaps he is being quite reasonable to only be taking 33% ? Unless I am misunderstanding things.

Aquamarine1029 · 21/05/2023 00:45

You need to get a solicitor involved immediately. Did your FIL actually ever remarry? If so, is he now legally a bigamist? There's a lot to deal with here, you need real legal counsel.

SwiftieStreet · 21/05/2023 00:48

You're wasting your time asking on here OP. As the replies above show, people who have no clue will post their opinion. Speak to a solicitor.

Haywirecity · 21/05/2023 00:56

Could your husband take a smaller share so she could get her mortgage and then she pays him back as she can?

SusanMaria · 21/05/2023 01:51

It's maybe a bit late to be arguing it now. Your DH and SIL should have contested the will if they weren't happy with FIL inheriting the house. Ask a solicitor.

I don't think it's clear cut because he's lied somehow about the divorce? If they were properly divorced and finances settled he wouldn't have automatically inherited the house in the role of "husband". He can't be late MIL DH and the new wife's DH, that's bigamy. So either he shouldn't have inherited the house or his new "marriage" isn't.

Do DH and SIL want a relationship with FIL though? Because arguing about inheritance is the best way to kill it stone dead, I'd say.

MoreRainbowsPlease · 21/05/2023 01:58

So did they ever get the decree absolut? If so did your MIL never change her will. I'm trying to understand how the house has ended up being your FIL's.

Unicorn2022 · 21/05/2023 02:04

So are you saying that they did divorce but he inherited the whole house as he was still listed as joint owner?

Whichnumbers · 21/05/2023 02:16

does FIL want to ruin his relationship with his family?

poetryandwine · 21/05/2023 03:30

Without a decree absolute, your PILs were never divorced and your FIL is a bigamist. Assuming this is all in the UK. This seems clear from several solicitor web sites I have just consulted.

That your FIL wants to exercise thi technicality to retain a share in your MIL’s house seems pretty tacky to me, even if he is proposing at the mo to take only a 1/3 share. I think you should use the knowledge to benefit your DH and SIL.

You need a solicitor!

Namechange224422 · 21/05/2023 06:10

I am not a lawyer but I do know that challenging inheritance is very very expensive. Even in a case which is clear cut which this isn’t. Remember if it hasn’t been split it wasn’t ever really mil house - he would initially have put in deposit and mortgage money and not had any payment out to reflect that.

Unless the house is worth a huge amount of money financially your husband will be best off not challenging and accepting the third. Although you could ask a solicitor for a quote to double check.

Emotionally it’s tough if sil wants to keep the house, but that probably needs to be balanced against the likelihood of losing a relationship with fil if you push for more than he has offered. I think that his offer is actually quite fair.

Have you tried calculating his ideal selling price minus all of the costs of selling to a stranger (agent fees, repainting house, cleaning and gardening to keep it nice, additional solicitor fees) and then working out what sil would have to pay him? It might not be that different from the original figure. I would think that showing him this calculation and offering him a third of the final figure would be the most successful option for you in the long run.

I know it wouldn’t be ideal but would your dh accept slightly less than a third giving fil slightly more in order to move things forward and keep the house in the family? Might be worth considering…..

Neverknowno · 21/05/2023 06:19

Did your MIL ever paid him for his share of the house? Presumably they owned it together and he always had a financial stake in it?

If it can be proved she had bought him out of the house by paying him for his share or otherwise, then there may be a case.

PermanentTemporary · 21/05/2023 06:20

I would talk to a solicitor, probably more than one. Be very clear what you want to achieve and ask for a percentage chance that you will achieve it.

From personal experience of the strain of a legal process, I would want 70% chance of achieving my goal before starting anything. You won't have a relationship with your FIL if you do, and quite likely not with your SIL either.

Ask yourself what your relative would really have wanted to see you spending your time doing.

Scottishlanza · 21/05/2023 06:28

It’s likely that this has nothing to do with the will or his remarriage. Sounds like they divorced but didn’t sort the house which was held on a ‘joint tenants’ basis. Legally when a house is owned this way it goes to the joint owner on death and it does this outside any will. One thing that could have been done even if the house wasn’t fully sorted was to sever the joint tenancy and make the house ‘tenants in common’ then your mother in law could leave half the house in the will and FIL gets the other half. Obviously the way he’s offering to split, ie three ways is more beneficial to your DH and SIL

poetryandwine · 21/05/2023 06:33

The posters above make good points that absent the decree absolute your FIL probably has a moral entitlement to a share of the house. How much depends on how much he put in and how long ago the ‘divorce’ was. Whether the bigamy should morally affect this, and whether it actually does, are interesting questions. For a solicitor.

Original poster
Toomuchgrief23 · 21/05/2023 11:39

Morning all.
Thanks for the responses.
Just to clarify, in recent years, prior to FIL remarriage, they divorced and have a decress absolute, just the house was never sorted as part of this (MIL was already not keeping well and DC decided to trust their Dad).
I appreciate those saying that the 70/30 split seems more than fair which DH and SIL are agreeable to, but it seems that he may now be moving the goalposts.
There is the option of my DH taking less inheritance so that his sister can buy the property but I suppose this is more a matter of principle.
MIL and FIL bought the house for a very small about (under 20k) all those years ago, FIL lived in it and contributed for around 5yrs and since then refused to contribute to sell his share or to contribute to the mortgage or upkeep.
MIL worked hard and struggled to keep the house so that her DC would have a good inheritance and some financial stability and would hate the thought of him benefitting from this.
I hear that he has always had a legal stake in the property but morally it just seems very wrong to me.

OP posts:
Original poster
Toomuchgrief23 · 21/05/2023 11:43

Unicorn2022 · 21/05/2023 02:04

So are you saying that they did divorce but he inherited the whole house as he was still listed as joint owner?

Yes he was a joint owner and this was never resolved in the original or more recent divorce proceedings.
It is documented in the recent proceedings that he has said that there was no financial assets to be sorted out, which is not true.

OP posts:
tailinthejam · 21/05/2023 12:07

What did it say in her will?

Toddlerteaplease · 21/05/2023 12:09

Geppili · 21/05/2023 00:34

He is her husband. Clear cut.

Was it also willed to him?