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Original poster

Clubbing together with siblings to buy property for parent

27 replies

genericperson123 · 07/04/2023 23:02

My father has been asked to leave his rental property as the landlord wants to sell. My siblings and I have considered buying somewhere for him to live, but not sure how it would work. None of us would want to put the property in his name as he is terrible with money.

We already own our home, as does one other sibling (through a mortgage) so would it be classed as a second property? This is all new to us and I'm not even sure where to start. We'd obviously need to get a mortgage though between us we'd have some deposit.

I feel I don't even know where to start as there seem to be so many elements to consider. Has anyone experience of doing a similar thing?

OP posts:
parietal · 07/04/2023 23:05

How many siblings? Can you all afford to tie your money up? What would happen if one sibling wanted to sell and get their share of the money back?

If you do it, have a formal agreement on who owns what % of the property and who pays maintenance and who does the organisation of maintenance etc. much better to plan these things in advance than to have a row afterwards.

tescocreditcard · 07/04/2023 23:10

I think it would be classed as a second house yes.

How old is your father?

Why don't you help him apply for social housing instead of buying him a house.

Sugarfree23 · 07/04/2023 23:12

Are you all able to pay mortgage?

I'd speak with BA and find out if it will affect his benefits in any way?

I'm assuming he is older wouldn't he be better with a council sheltered house?

I'd be very wary of putting money into a private sheltered house, often they come with huge maintenance fees and are hard to sell on.

alexdgr8 · 07/04/2023 23:17

if he is being evicted and is over 55, the council might have some responsibility to house him.
i am not sure, and there may be local variations.
suggest you contact shelter.

Fretfulmum · 07/04/2023 23:37

This is a recipe for disaster OP. Honestly, I wouldn’t do it, no matter how close you all are. How old is he? The council will be able to help find him suitable accommodation, but if he has over £16k (I think- please check) in his savings, then he won’t get financial help.
If you proceed with a joint mortgage, you will all be equally liable for the mortgage- can you all afford it? Those of you who already own homes would be classed as second home owners therefore the property will attract the stamp duty surcharge. If one of you doesn’t, then they will be paying the surcharge when they purchase their own home. If one of you is suddenly unable to pay the mortgage, the other siblings will have the responsibility to pay your share too. This can cause huge disagreements in family. Who will pay for maintenance and repairs ? I’d only proceed if you are very very financially comfortable and the house price is pocket money to you.

Fretfulmum · 07/04/2023 23:42

Also think about different life scenarios. What if one of you wanted to put any extra money towards your own child in the future. You may start to resent having to pay towards your dads mortgage and house maintenance, instead of giving your own child a better quality life. What if one of you could no longer afford it, and wanted to sell your share- would the other siblings be able to buy them out ? How many siblings are you? Don’t underestimate the maintenance costs for houses- thousands per year

PropertyGeek525 · 08/04/2023 00:06

Best to speak to a mortgage broker. They will probably suggest a family mortgage.

TomatoSandwiches · 08/04/2023 00:08

Sign him up for social housing.

MrsTerryPratchett · 08/04/2023 00:12

You'd be very silly to wonder this. Renting to family is fraught. So is buying with family. So is becoming an accidental landlord. So is tying up capital with two separate family members during a CoL crisis.

Cart him off down the Council and tell them he has nowhere to go and no, you won't be housing him.

MrsTerryPratchett · 08/04/2023 00:13

Wonder = imagine.

DiscoBeat · 08/04/2023 00:36

We did this for a family member - bought a house and they pay rent at 'mates rates'. But it sounds complicated amongst a group of you, unless you are all definitely on the same page. If it's in his name it would be used as his assets if he needs to have care at some point, so something to factor in in case you were considering it as a kind of long term investment as well as helping him.

BloodyThursday · 08/04/2023 01:25

Does he get any benefits? My DP looked at doing this for his mother but it would mean she lost some form of pension credit (or similar) and he'd have to also pay her a few hundred a month to make that up as well.

Lastqueenofscotland2 · 08/04/2023 07:53

I think it’s one of those which is a lovely idea on paper but the reality is a bit different!
Yes it would be a second home so stamp duty would be enourmous, and there would be tax implications should you need to sell it.
Would you earn enough for a second mortgage?
And yes what happens ten years down the line when a sibling wants to save for DCs uni/car/house deposit and no longer wants to pay?

MichelleScarn · 08/04/2023 07:56

Fretfulmum · 07/04/2023 23:42

Also think about different life scenarios. What if one of you wanted to put any extra money towards your own child in the future. You may start to resent having to pay towards your dads mortgage and house maintenance, instead of giving your own child a better quality life. What if one of you could no longer afford it, and wanted to sell your share- would the other siblings be able to buy them out ? How many siblings are you? Don’t underestimate the maintenance costs for houses- thousands per year

Also does your dad have a partner? If not what if he does and they move in? Or split and they then refuse to move out?

youhavenoidea123 · 08/04/2023 08:24

My partner is in a similar situation, I wouldn't recommend it.

You will be responsible for maintaining the property and making any changes/adaptations they need as they get older.

They can not claim housing benefit to pay rent on a home owned by family.

Your money is tied up in a property you can't do anything with unless you evict your parent.

Also remember preppie are living longer. My gran is in her late 90's. This could be a long commitment.

JacobsCrackersCheeseFogg · 08/04/2023 09:20

I'm sorry for your Dad op. This happened to my mum's friend and she's now living with a different friend in her house. I have no advice but I think this problem is on the increase.

Original poster
genericperson123 · 08/04/2023 11:08

Thanks all so much for responding and for the sanity check! There are a lot of things I'd not even thought of which we'd need to consider. To the poster who said it sounds lovely on paper I think you may have hit the nail on the head, there are so many issues that could be a real problem in the future.

Yes, Dad gets pension credit and I think possibly has some savings but money benefits are a bit of a no go area where they are very vague and private. There is no way they would entertain going through the council so I suspect that would be a complete non starter unless he was literally on the street.

Re going in together, I'm not sure any of us really want to be tied into a property long term. We all have kids and they will need helping hands in the future - my dad is mid 70's so I guess will be needing help for a fair bit of time yet. I hadn't even thought about a partner moving in with them and the problems that might cause.

Technically we could just about afford it alone but it seems a big ask of my spouse as we have worked hard to be mortgage free. By re-mortgaging our house and using savings we may be able to be a cash buyer but then it will all fall on our shoulders and would use up all our safety nets, though could be a long term investment I suppose?

OP posts:
caringcarer · 08/04/2023 11:22

It will count as a second home and you will be hit with stamp duty land tax.

Lastqueenofscotland2 · 08/04/2023 12:11

As you all have kids and he’s not that old I think it’s even more a reason not to do it. You say you could just about afford it, what happens if the roof goes, or the boiler breaks? That’s more money into it.
Would it also mean you can’t save as much for your children? I think in the long term you’d regret it if it meant you couldn’t help them with uni/their deposit/a wedding or whatever it was. I think you could end up regretting and resenting it.
Also your DH needs to be on board, hell would freeze over before I bought my MIL a house… and I really like her!

Ihadenough22 · 08/04/2023 12:47

I would agree with the other posters here. You father is in his mid 70's and his adult children all have families. As these kids get older the expenses will get higher. So what happens if one of your siblings was out of work due to unemployment or bad health? Could the rest of you find their share of the mortgage each month?
What happens when things need to be repaired or replaced in this house?
Also if you do this your father's benefits could be effected. Since he is unwilling to tell you what money or benefits he gets you can't find out if he will be worse off if you do this.

Also in your own particular situation if your house is paid off you now have what you were paying in your mortgage each month to put towards savings, a pension ect. This money can be used now or in the future to make you or your children's lives easier.

In his case he could be better off in accomodation for an older person from the council as his benefits should cover the cost. You need to tell him that you will chat to the council on his behalf to see what he is entitled to.
I would not be buying him a house when it could cause major problems in time for you or your siblings. Nor would I let him move in with you if he is made homeless because he will end up living with you long term.

Twiglets1 · 08/04/2023 13:02

This is a potential disaster area, I wouldn’t do it at all. Why not just help him find a suitable alternative property to rent? Maybe help with the deposit if necessary, splitting it between the siblings. If he was able to pay the rent before and is only leaving because the landlord wants to sell, presumably he could afford private rent again? He may even have enough savings for a deposit who knows, but if not then that is the only part I would put money into.

Snowite · 08/04/2023 18:32

How much roughly would the total £ home cost and how many siblings sharing ownership?

If your share is < £40K you will be eligible for 2nd home stamp duty exemption. Likewise if someone who (only) owns a £40K property share then buys their own home later, that second property will not be charged at the second property premium rate.

Not suggesting it sounds like a good idea though!

Clementineorsatsuma · 08/04/2023 19:07

Why won't he think about a Council/ Housing Assn property?

orangeflags · 08/04/2023 19:10

Don't do it

Readingtoaster · 08/04/2023 19:15

We had this with my grandpa. He lived there for many years. Then my parents divorced and the house had to be sold in the divorce.
not saying it will happen just another thing to think about.