Signing the house over to the children

[Summerpigeon]

We are a married couple very early fifties ,with 4 young adult DC
Two have a diagnosis of autism,and two have probably enough traits to scrape a diagnosis,if they decided to pursue one .
One of the DC ,is very high support needs ,so will need support to live independently.
Currently we are finishing paying our mortgage off,
And trying to think of ways to support our children financially
So ,we were toying with the idea of adding all four children on to the house ,so basically we all own a sixth of it .
I'm just wondering if anyone can think of any negatives I've not already thought of ..I know they could refuse to let us sell up and move
Any thoughts?

So no one with a mortgage or house can claim universal credit...???

My own needs , current or future,never even crossed my mind
I'm too busy managing everyone else's .
The eldest is high support needs ,and needs a lot of support day to day

So no one with a mortgage or house can claim universal credit...???

Why are you responding so aggressively?

Ok
Yeah , eldest has had some dodgy boyfriends,I actually hadn't thought that it could become an asset in a divorce
Thanks ,good points

Just trying to think of ways to give them security

But how will it give them security? Owning a sixth of a house that one of their siblings or one of their sibling's husbands or wives could force the sale of.

It's my husband's idea
I said I'd think about it

I don't know ,
I'm clearly not thinking straight

I wasn't
It was a genuine question
Not claiming as I'm a sahp,

A trust is a possibility but it's got tax implications and I can't see how it helps them anyway.

Them owning a share or having access to assets in theory could stop them claiming certain benefits, cause stamp duty issues etc especially if you higher needs child goes into a residential setting - their benefits will cover their rent, care etc but there is a cap on the assets they can personally have

Thanks everyone
Will think again
Clearly it's not the best idea

I wasn't
It was a genuine question
Not claiming as I'm a sahp,

Ok, it was the punctuation. I apologise.

Have you posted (maybe in the parenting topic) about any of this because to me it sounds like you need some help with what to do about care for your children as you get older.

Being a homeowner comes with responsibilities- how would the child with autism pay his share of repairs to the house once you’re gone? The other children are not going to be impressed if they have to pay his share. Would you expect the other 3 to pay their sibling’s day to day expenses like furniture for his bedroom ?

I think that it’s highly unlikely that all 4 children will want the same thing (all live there /sell and all buy new places ) Is it big enough for 4 adults and maybe partners and later their kids?

This will sound blunt, but you absolutely need to think of your own future. Hopefully you and your DH will have good health and live to a decent age, but none of us are mortal and you will be doing your children a disservice if you don’t acknowledge this fact. When considering the future you need to factor in what will happen when a) you are too old/infirm to look after your children and b) when you die. If you’re not careful your two children who are currently without an autism diagnosis (and presumably are more independent) will end up feeling responsible for both aging parents and high needs siblings.

please don’t go down the route of “oh we’ll think about that when we get there” because it will be too late.

If it's security that concerns you then I'd make sure you write your wills and consider leaving your estate when both you and your DH have died into a trust for the benefit of some / all the children.

We will leave 50% to DS directly and 50% to a trust for DD benefit. This means it won't affect her benefits or social care costs and will be outside anyone's reach if she marries and then divorces.

They can only claim if they're living in the property. If they were not living in the property then benefits treat them as if they have the value of their share as savings.

working in health care with elderly people, including those who have had lifetime responsibility for disabled adult children, I see it all the time where people don’t plan ahead . If you are both in your early 50’s then it’s really a good time to start thinking about it and seek some professional advice.We are in our 50’s too and have already lost more than 1 friend to illness, leaving dependant children.

I'm just looking into it as similar situation, but mine are still fairly young.
We think we will put our house in a trust, with us as trustees. I believe this then doesn't count towards the benefits or FTb ownership as they aren't direct beneficiaries.
Absolutely pay for legal advice in this case as the wording must be spot on.
www.scope.org.uk/advice-and-support/leaving-money-to-disabled-person-in-will-trust

I am in a very similar position to the OP. Three autistic children, well adults now. We thought about giving each one a third before we die. Difference with us is its a shared ownership house, the value of each third would be small and buyout-able by any of them. We just want them to have security of tenure.

In our experience, the hope of independent living is small. The houses around here are quite expensive and no new shared ownerships are currently being built. Before any of that though, there is the issue of getting a job. The eldest two have applied for job after job and have got nowhere. Even getting an interview is a remarkable event but none of them are very good at face-to-face stuff so things can be awkward and they get rejected straight away.

We are trying to make things easier for them after we have gone so I am thinking of transferring utilities into their name over time and I have tried to put together a manual for who to contact after we have died. None of them are very good on the phone either so I want to minimise as much dealings with officialdom as possible.

None have shown any interest in relationships so far but as I said, their individual shares are easily bought out by the others, if that changes.

The most practical thing is to downsize if possible and free up the money. You could invest in other vehicles.

I think you're abandoning this idea OP but I can't think of any good reason in favour of it either.

It won't even save you on Inheritance Tax as there are rules which will treat you as still owning the property if you give it away but continue to live there.

There will be a solution OP. Consult with reasonably sized solicitors firms. and compare their findings.

You don’t want to force siblings to pay for the upkeep of a house if not all of them live there anymore.

My eldest doesn't even leave the house alone , refusing to handle money ,buy anything in a shop ,or take any kind of responsibility.
He's 25 and believe me I've tried ,he has a social worker who has also tried .
He's also vulnerable,and desperate for a friend,so in a flat ,it would be easy for someone to be calling round , offering to help him with shopping and basically taking his pip ..he's so trusting..he hides his money in his bedroom,and we have to go in search for it and bank it ..
He's not matured much from 13 for me to think this will get any better,he's 25
So yeah ,I'm just trying to think how I can help him ,yet be fair to the others

Check out the CGT Implications if you are gifting a capital asset. This definitely needs a solicitor or IFA help

I'm in a similar position, @Summerpigeon: I have two autistic children with high needs. My oldest sounds just like your 25-year-old son. I plan to set up a trust for them, but have also been wondering if it makes sense for us to downsize from our house into two flats. Then DH and I can live in one and our DC can share the other one and, hopefully, gain some independence. However, I worry about what would happen if one wants to move and release his share of the property. I also worry about the expense of running two properties instead of one, assuming both boys are on benefits.

It's all so complicated. So it's on my list to see a solicitor who specialises in disability. I recommend you do the same.