Question re Wills and Inheritance

[GhostWhisper]

I have a 96 year old relative, who is quite poorly. When he does pass, myself and my 2 brothers will inherite his house, which is currently worth about 500k. Obviously we are aware of the inheritance tax issues here. Now, my Uncle wants to sell his house now, and move closer to us (so we can care for him) He has agreed to go into a nursing home as he doesnt want to live with any of us. We all have a lot of children, and he admits would drive him crazy, but he is becoming frailer and frailer by the day. He has a will that has been written for many years stating that his home would become ours, but what happens if he moves first and splits the money leaving some to pay for his care? Do we just ensure we save enough for a big tax bill when the day comes? I am concerend by brothers will spend all their share and Ill have to pay their tax bill? Any help gratefully recieved. JJ

[GhostWhisper]

That makes sense, and thank you very much for the response. Yes, we have planned to ensure he has enough funds left in his bank account to pay for his nursing fees for over 7 years plus to enjoy whatever time he has left. If we aer fortunate to still have him around in 7 years, then myself and my two brothers will be responsible for his care. I wanted to ensure that it wouldn't be down to just me for the bill! Thanks again

[antiguru]

Individual beneficiaries are not liable for IHT, the Estate is. In other words the tax bill must be paid before the money is shared anyway, so there is no way your siblings can land you personally with the bill.

I�d be more concerned about checking the wording of the Will. If it specifically says he�ll leave you the house and no alternative then when he sells it there is no house to leave you. End of bequest. There are 2 options here. First, if the Will says house and possessions there�s no need to worry. If it says house only, you�ll need to get Uncle to redo Will or do a Codicil to redefine what he�s leaving the three of you.

The Prophet is correct about the 7 year rule. You should also look into the cost of Nursing Homes and the rules about who pays and what is means tested. The tax bill will be less as his Estate diminishes through paying for Care.

I would suggest that you�re not �Aware of the IHT issues� other than that his Estate is likely to be above the threshold. Now is a good time to do some more research. The IR site is quite good, but Google too.