A number of issues over the will

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My Mother died last year and my brother and I are executors of my Mum's share of the house. My other sister and brother are executor of my Dads' share who is dead 10 years. There was a separation and my Dad was allowed to live in the house until death and then my Mum if that makes sense. My Dad left his share divided between the four of us. My Mum left me her share so I own 5/8 My sister and brother have put the house on the market without letting me know (they are not talking to me over my Mum's will) and my Brother who is co-executor with me of my Mum's will (50%) actually put it on with the estate agent and again didn't let me know (he is not talking to me either). Surely he can't do this and you can't sell 50% of a house?

Any advice would be appreciated. My Mothers solicitor seems to be very easy going about the whole thing although agrees' that it is not acceptable.
 
How else are they going to realise their 1/8 valuation each without selling it? You can buy the house yourself if this is what you want and then they get the 3/8 money and you get the house.

It would be simpler if you all could agree on the value of the house and then you pay each 1/8th, but if you are not talking selling seems to be the fairest.
 
Im sorry for your loss. its a tough time and rows over wills can hurt.

Assuming that the house was owned as joint tenants ( where each own 50% each) then its possible to sell a 50% share.
However, the value would be lower than 50% of the value of the house, as few people want to buy a 50% share.

The executors of your fathers will have to give the 4 benefeciaries the value of their inheritance, so have to sell, unless all 4 are agreed to own the 50% share of the house .

It sounds like one of the executors of your mothers will thinks the best thing to so it sell.

I think you need to consider that outcome you want.

I hope you want an outcome that tries to preserve your relationship with you siblings. They are are hurting that their mother left them nothing but hopefully this won't last forever.

Surely, the best outcome is to sell the house and everyone gets the value of their inheritance.
 
Thank you for your kind words and recommendations.

They didn't put 50% of the share of the house on the market they put 100% of the house and I happened to see it on the internet otherwise I would never have known that it was for sale.

I agree the house does need to be sold but surely I should have been asked or at least informed before it was put on the market?
 
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You really need to meet with your solicitor who in turn gets in touch with the executor and their solicitor.
 
SBW said:
They didn't put 50% of the share of the house on the market they put 100% of the house and I happened to see it on the internet otherwise I would never have known that it was for sale.

I agree the house does need to be sold but surely I should have been asked or at least informed before it was put on the market?
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The issue here isn't a legal one, it's a personal one. You and your siblings are not talking to each other so they didn't bother telling you.

Maybe get the solicitor to inform your siblings that any future decisions should be communicated to you through the solicitor?
 
You are an executor so the sale decision cannot exclude you, including choice of agent. However you only have an entitlement to some of the property so you should try to agree. Look to the future and focus on what you want to happen to the property.
 
If you are listed as a part owner the sale cannot go through without your consent. It is a bit high handed for them to try this. If you refusr to agree to a sale they can of course go to the Circuit Court and apply for an order to sell. This will cost you all money and will take a few years to go to court.
I suggest a solicitors letter to them clarifying your position. As you are not speaking the solicitor can negotiate with their solicitor.
The best thing to do in my opinion is sell and walk away. I am not a great believer in this bullshit about family bonds when they treat each other badly
 
There is a legal side to this issue. Do they actually have any right to be offering the house for sale? They could argue that they are acting as the executors of your father's estate, and so are selling the property in order to finalise his estate. The problem with that is that he didn't own the entire property, so how should they be proceeding?

It's certainly not the smartest thing to be putting it on the market without contacting you. It would be interesting to know whether they took any legal advice over whether they have any authority to do that.
 
SBW said:
They didn't put 50% of the share of the house on the market they put 100% of the house and I happened to see it on the internet otherwise I would never have known that it was for sale.

I agree the house does need to be sold but surely I should have been asked or at least informed before it was put on the market?
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You can't sell half a house, nobody would buy it.

You've said it needs to be sold so what exactly is your issue?

The sooner it's sold the better surely.

And then you and your three siblings who are not talking to you can go your merry ways forever - everybody as miserable as each other.

Why did you end up with all your mother's estate?
 
Vanessa said:
If you are listed as a part owner the sale cannot go through without your consent. It is a bit high handed for them to try this. If you refusr to agree to a sale they can of course go to the Circuit Court and apply for an order to sell. This will cost you all money and will take a few years to go to court.
I suggest a solicitors letter to them clarifying your position. As you are not speaking the solicitor can negotiate with their solicitor.
The best thing to do in my opinion is sell and walk away. I am not a great believer in this bullshit about family bonds when they treat each other badly
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I would also add that as you own 5/8ths i.e. a majority you should if needed have the decision in absence of an agreement to nominate the estate agent, solicitor etc who will handle the sale. They could always insist on having a solicitor to be involved but would be liable for his fee.
Like you they also have a veto on the sale and could delay a sale in which case you would have to go to court to get anorder to sell
 
The less talk of vetos the better. The executors, all of them are under a duty to sell or buy out the others. Pronto. OP wants to sell, so do the siblings, instead of the lot of them wasting money on court orders to sell and paying hefty legal bills to everyone's detriment they need to all cop on and just agree to whatever auctioneer and solicitor will do the job at a reasonable price. This is not rocket science.
 
Vanessa said:
I would also add that as you own 5/8ths i.e. a majority you should if needed have the decision in absence of an agreement to nominate the estate agent, solicitor etc who will handle the sale. They could always insist on having a solicitor to be involved but would be liable for his fee.
Like you they also have a veto on the sale and could delay a sale in which case you would have to go to court to get anorder to sell
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He doesn't own 5/8th's. He entitled to a 5/8ths share of the houses monetary value less costs. He may buy out his siblings and acquire the other 3/8th's share and then he'll own the entire property. Of course meanwhile the siblings might be enquiring about a S117 application.
 
Bronte said:
...You've said it needs to be sold so what exactly is your issue?...
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I would assume the worry is they will sell it and give the OP 2/8 not 5/8.

His question is really can they proceed without the OP involvement, legally.
 
If the estate agent has not been made aware of the situation perhaps it would be best to get your solicitor to issue a letter immediately to them informing them of this and therefore put a stop to the sale.
 
SBW said:
My Mother died last year and my brother and I are executors of my Mum's share of the house. My other sister and brother are executor of my Dads' share who is dead 10 years. There was a separation and my Dad was allowed to live in the house until death and then my Mum if that makes sense. My Dad left his share divided between the four of us. My Mum left me her share so I own 5/8 My sister and brother have put the house on the market without letting me know (they are not talking to me over my Mum's will) and my Brother who is co-executor with me of my Mum's will (50%) actually put it on with the estate agent and again didn't let me know (he is not talking to me either).
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We need some clarification here. You were initially bequeathed ¼ share of your late father's share of the property. Did you actually obtain this inheritance, i.e. were you made a tenant in common with the other beneficiaries? Was your name registered with Land Registry as a co-owner of the property? This was the responsibility of the executors of your late father's estate. Was the value of your inheritance from your father established as this will affect any subsequent tax liability under the group A threshold, when you inherit your share from your late mother? If would be prudent to write to your late father's personal representatives to establish these points.

You do not mention if a grant of probate as been made on your late mother's estate. Has this occurred? If not, the property cannot be sold, i.e. the estate cannot be administered as you and your co-executor do not have the authority to do so without a grant of probate. You say your co-executor is “not talking to me either”, but did he talk to you to obtain the grant of probate?

I think you need to look for legal advice on this. Initially to establish your legal right to your share of the property, based on the inheritance from your late father, if you have not already done so, and then concerning your co-executor's behaviour.
 
Clamball said:
How else are they going to realise their 1/8 valuation each without selling it? You can buy the house yourself if this is what you want and then they get the 3/8 money and you get the house.
It would be simpler if you all could agree on the value of the house and then you pay each 1/8th, but if you are not talking selling seems to be the fairest.
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Someone with a minority interest in a property is not in a legal position to sell the house and realise their share. They can't sell it to anyone, even the majority owner.
 
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