what is the best way to 'lend' MIL money?

[cuppawithbiccies]

MIL is moving and her new home is more expensive than the house that she is moving from. We, ie DH and myself, want to 'lend' her 10K to complete the purchase. We have reviewed our finances carefully and are happy to do this on the understanding that it does not need repaying until we are dealing with her estate when she dies - ie the 10K is repaid before the rest is divided between the rest of the family.

The solicitor is refusing to exchange contracts on this basis and wants us to give the money to her as a 'gift' which means it will not be repaid.

We thought about doing this and then having an extra bequest in MILs will that gave us an extra 10K however we are worried that if MIL needs to eventually go into care the home may need to be sold to pay for it and we would have no cause to ring fence that 10K.

I realise that circumstances can change and the solicitor is only looking after MIL best interests but she isn't coming up with any other alternatives.

Is there any other way?

Could you not become a partial owner of the house: ie, if it cost £200k your £10k turns into 5% interest upon sale of the house? Up to you & MIL whether you ever try to demand she pay up. I can't believe soliciter won't do what they're instructed to do, unless they are trying to say it's illegal.

(I may be saying something ignorant there)

thanks for the replies- have just spent ages corresponding with the solicitor who will now accept the money as long as it is in DHs name and not mine grrr. We will have to get a solicitor to draw something up after the move. Probably should have gone down the route of putting our name on the house but exchange and completion imminent, so wanted a quick win. thanks anyway

Now just need to prove where the money came from due to money laundering rules.

You need a second charge put on her house for the money.

It's similar, although we both own it, when I bought this house, I hadn't been together that long with now DH. He put the deposit in so we both agreed that the deeds said first 10k (his deposit) was his.