inheritance of home

J

joco

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Looking for some suggestions re how to split the inheritance of the family home. Currently my Father's will splits the family home between 3 Adult children. He would like to change this to ensure that the child that lives with him can keep the house (he doesn't believe that they can afford to buy out the siblings as the current will was setup for). However he also wants to be as fair as possible to all siblings without selling the house.


One of the children lives with the Father and has lived there with Family for 20 odd years - free of charge (i.e. no bills, no rent). In repayment for this, that person has the bulk of the work re looking after the Father, although the other kids regularly visit. This is mainly housework. The father still drives etc.

They are not in a position to buy out the other 2 siblings and likely won't be. The Father's concern is that the other 2 siblings have a house and the sibling living there doesn't. However if the house is left to one person, the other siblings will have large mortgages and they will have a mortgage free house which seems unequal.


Any suggestions in how to setup the will to be a little more fair? For instance, have the sibling who minds the father stay in the house for rest of life and then on death it is split between the other grand children?
 
joco said:
the other siblings will have large mortgages and they will have a mortgage free house which seems unequal
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Yes... but. The other siblings will not have had to take care of their father to his dying day (please God a long way off). As Dad gets older, there will be more hospital visits/tests/in-patient treatment, more illness, less mobility, etc., etc., Not to be morbid, but it's a fact that as people get older, these things happen. When he's no longer able to drive, the resident sibling will have to take on all the care. Personally I would suggest that the other two siblings should be delighted that their father would be so well cared for in his own home to the end of his days, with very little worry or inconvenience to themselves.
 
And they will be the people driving him there and will be heavily involved in the care. It will never fall on just the resident sibling. We are a close family.

I thought the year's without bills for a family would even that out. So was looking for suggestions that are more equitable. I'm happy to be out of the will. However would find it hard to see one sibling own 100% of house when the other siblings house is owned by bank.

Any suggestions on how to have the will accommodate this more fairly?
 
There is no easy solution here. There is only one asset here ... the house. Your father wants the son without a home to remain in it as he has nowhere else to go. The only way the asset can be evenly divided is by selling it which turfs the son at home out.

Your father can't distribute what he hasn't got to distribute. Has he other assets? Money etc. that can go to the other siblings?
 
joco said:
One of the children lives with the Father and has lived there with Family for 20 odd years - free of charge (i.e. no bills, no rent). In repayment for this, that person has the bulk of the work re looking after the Father, although the other kids regularly visit.
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Was this ever agreed or did it just happen.
Unwritten stuff like this just never does "even out"
joco said:
We are a close family.
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Thats all fine until there is an estate to fight over.

As others have said, its not easy when there is a single chunky asset

Father is not obliged to leave anything to anyone and this usually stands unless someone has been clearly treated differently: e.g. two got UNI education while one got to work the land.
Any fights along these lines are done under
http://www.irishstatutebook.ie/1965/en/act/pub/0027/sec0117.html#sec117

you give no clue as to values or your fathers age here so we can't help with any tax planning or such things as equity release.
Would 1/3 of the house value buy a smaller gaff for the "minder child": people get hung up on "De Family Home" but one needs to cut the cloth
 
Thanks for the comments.

No other assets. Other than a generous pension. 're any agreements there was never anything said.

The resident sibling did receive 3rd level education where the other sibling did not.

Father is in late 70s and in good health. A share of house would buy a smaller house in a different neighbourhood. However he doesn't want it sold. I thought that there could be a way to have the resident sibling live there till death and then have next generation inherit but that sounds messy. If there is no other solution then I guess we just live with it. Thanks for all your help.
 
As it happens it's entirely doable to do what you're asking about, but around here people tend to want to give their tuppenceworth.

He just needs to will a life interest to the resident child, and a reversion to whoever else on that person's death. A decent solicitor can sort this easily.
 
If the family are as close as you say they are, maybe the siblings with the mortgages might like to pay the sibling who is minding the father some remuneration for doing so, also some thanks and appreciation. On top of that they should make it clear to the carer that they won't be trying to turf him/her out on the road when that time comes and don't want anything from the estate. It might be an idea as well to pray that none of them passes away before the father does. Life has a great way of solving imaginary problems and greed.
 
It's hardly greed when i have said I'm fine not to be in the will. I was looking for suggestions to resolve without a fight not so much snap judgements from strangers who seem to be looking for a fight.
 
joco said:
It's hardly greed when i have said I'm fine not to be in the will. I was looking for suggestions to resolve without a fight not so much snap judgements from strangers who seem to be looking for a fight.
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Life interest would seem the fairest option. Up to now there was no taking care of the father based on what you've posted. So it would seem to be unfair that one child inherits everything.

What did the child do with the money he/she saved on rent for the last 20 years?

Who wants to keep the house in the family, the father or the child.

At the end of the day it is the father who decides what to do with his house and it really has nothing to do with the children. But families being families and fathers wanting to do the right thing by everybody muddies the water, so an open and honest discussion is the best option.

Another issue is long term care costs of the father. Might mean the house would need to be sold.
 
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