Can my parent force the sale of an inherited house?

[Susuwataris]

Keeping it a bit general as I don't want to be too outing. Parent has two siblings. They lost their parents and there is property worth around £600000.

One sibling living in the house. Likes it there. Parent wants to sell house, third sibling also wanted to. However has since changed their mind due to sibling in house persuading them (possibly financially). They both say they want to wait to sell house to allow the one living there to sort themselves out. Parent wants to sell as soon as due to their age.

Will states estate is to be shared between siblings. Concern my parent has that if they die before the sale that their share then gets shared out between the other two and that this is part of the reason they want to wait.

Can they force the sale of the house? I imagine the relationships between them all won't be in a great shape either way.

Surely if your parent has inherited then it forms part of their estate so it would be divided according to their will? But am not a lawyer !

If one dies then their share would pass to their children.

I think the will has to be followed.

No it’s part of your parents estate even if tied.

Their share would pass to their heirs. But yes, if they want to liquidate the money, they can force a sale.

You’ll need two siblings, but yes you can force it unless sib 3 can buy you out.

What you can also do is check the wording of the will - lots of them say bequeath to x and if x is deceased the children of x.

If that’s not in there, I’d ask a lawyer. Because currently all 3 sibs own the house and so they can leave their share onward, house sold or not.

As long as all 3 sibs were alive when the house owner died, no one can take their shares away. Make sure they put that share in their own will.

If one sibling wants to stay in the house, they need to buy the other 2 out, based on market value.

Suggest your parent seems advice from the lawyer managing the estate.

I'm really sorry I've just got more information which I think changes it. I'm really sorry for the drip feed, I was going on what I was told and now I've questioned it further I got more info. Apparently the will states that if any of them dies it is to be shared amongst the surviving siblings. Hence why my parent is so angry.

I am trying to persuade them to get legal advice. Their approach at the moment is anger which really isn't productive.

Then the parent should get solicitors to make the executors to fulfill the terms of the will.
Are you sure there isn’t a clause to say that they can stay in the house with a lifetime interest?

Normally you'd expect that wording to only apply if a beneficiary predeceases the person making the will.

In this case, your parent has already inherited their third of the property. If they were to unfortunately pass away, presumably their share would form part of their own estate.

Maybe you should get a copy of the grandparent's will and show it to a solicitor.

We have this exact same issue when my husband 's mother died.

One of his brothers was living in the house and did not want to leave.

We consulted a solicitor and he was not very helpful and quite negative and just said it would be difficult to get him out.

Luckily in our case the brother managed to find somewhere to live and moved out on his accord.

I'm sure that you can take him to court but it will cost tens of thousands of pounds but I don't think that you will have any choice.

Are you sure you've understood that correctly? It would make sense if it said the property was shared between the surviving siblings when the original owner died (although unusual), but as it stands now, your parent owns their share and can leave it as they see fit. The original will can have no bearing on that, unless it was left in some sort of trust structure.

No. They moved in temporarily just before the grandparent died but there was no agreement they could stay there

Surely that would mean that if one of the siblings had pre deceased the elderly parent ( who in your case has already died) , then it would have been shared with surviving siblings. From what you describe, all three have technically already inherited now and ‘own’ a third each. I don’t think a will can then go forward in time unless there is a trust of some kind. So your parent owns a third and if they want the cash, the others have to either buy them out or it has to be sold. Is there a clause to say anyone can stay for their lifetime? If not - get a solicitor and it will have to be sold.

That's interesting. We need to get hold of the will but the only copy is with one of the siblings who I believe is the executor of the will. It is very vague and I appreciate that is frustrating for which I apologise. My parent isn't very legally knowledgeable.

I think we really need to get legal advice and a copy of the will.

I appreciate everyone's replies, it's been really helpful

DH inherited a property shared with his sibling. Their father was living in it at the time, but was not a beneficiary.

The sibling decided they wanted their share of the property but we were not in a position to buy them out. Legal advice at that point was that properties are bought to be sold and that regardless of who was living there, if it went to court, sale would be forced. The cost of trying to prevent a sale would rapidly outweigh the property value (which was only around £200k in their case).

So, sibling essentially evicted their own father, who was already 70ish by that point. And is now surprised that their own father won't speak to them anymore.

I use this to illustrate that it is possible to force a sale, but such an action may have consequences that need to be considered.

But in this case the sibling has only recently moved in on a temporary basis, so they can’t claim to be dependent and losing their home. If he likes it that much he can buy the others out. Or go back to wherever he was living before.

You absolutely do, and a copy of the will really should be made as soon as possible. Then consult a solicitor.

Is the executor the sibling who is currently living in the property, or another sibling?

Your parent has likely misunderstood the will, it may say beneficiaries have to survive the deceased by 28 days to inherit, but any more would be unheard of. As they survived the deceased they now have a beneficial entitlement to their share of the property, should they die it would fall into their estate.

I asked Google this, with person A being your parent, Person B being the sibling who has moved in but was not ordinarily resident in the property, and Person C being the sibling who has changed their mind. I post the reply below, but the short answer is yes, they can enforce the sale. It would be easier and quicker if C would capitulate, or if B offered to buy out parent/person A but the guidance is:

Yes, Person A can force a sale through the courts using a TOLATA Claim if agreement fails, but they cannot do it unilaterally without a legal order. 1, 2]
Legal Framework and Forcing a Sale

• Trust of Land: Once a property is inherited and transferred to the beneficiaries, it is held under a trust of land. All three siblings (A, B, and C) effectively become co-owners and trustees. 1]
• TOLATA 1996: Under Section 14 of the Trusts of Land and Appointment of Trustees Act 1996, any individual with a beneficial interest can apply to the County Court for an Order for Sale when co-owners reach a deadlock. 1, 2, 3]
• Court Discretion: The court weighs statutory factors under Section 15, including the intentions of the parent who made the will, the purpose for which the property is held, and the welfare of any minor dependents. Because Person B is not ordinarily resident and only moved in temporarily, their claim to indefinitely block a sale is much weaker. 1, 2]

Practical Options and Considerations

• Buyout Alternative: Person B or C can choose to buy out Person A’s 1/3 share at current market value to avoid a forced open-market sale. 1]
• Occupation Rent: If Person B remains in the property without consent, Person A and C can request that Person B pay market rent for the share they occupy. 1, 2]
• Mediation: Courts strongly encourage attempting professional mediation before filing a formal legal claim. 1, 2]

Your parent needs to employ a solicitor - but might be worthwhile telling C this and that they plan to enforce sale using the above mechanism: they should advise that it would be easier if they just agreed to sell without going down this path as the legal costs of this will come out of the Trust - ie, they all pay, and their share of the proceeds of the sale of the house will decrease accordingly.

It's the other sibling, not the one living in the house

Irrelevant to my point which was about the longer term fall out and family members no longer speaking. And that the house absolutely can be sold, regardless of how long the relative has been living there, and whether they are dependent or not.

Your parents have inherited already, so I believe they get their share of the house whether it's sold or not before their death.

You need a copy of the Will (aren't they all online now?) and a Probate Solicitor.

Very difficult business really - and a potential one I'm grappling with at the moment - as my DC are University aged/young adults all living at home currently, and will inherit the house between them. I'm hoping to live a long while yet - but you can't discount anything and I'd hate to leave them in any situation where dispute can arise between them. It does ruin relationships.

The will should be a public record as soon as probate is applied for. Check the gov website.

Search probate records for documents and wills (England and Wales) - GOV.UK share.google/S581pvdDlkoKIq3XA

I can't find his probate record. I've tried different spellings but have found his wifes so I know it's the right spelling. It's been a few years so that's odd.

I should imagine that the Will is more likely to state that should one of the siblings die before the parent, their share will go to the other two siblings. It usually says that they have to die within 28 days of their parent’s death.
So if your parent is still alive after 28 days of their parents death their share of the house forms part of their estate.
‘Check the actual wording carefully. If you don’t have the Will, ask for a photograph of it.