Protective Property Trusts
These are a trust that sole intention is to make sure that your family home stays in your family.
The majority of homeowners own their homes as Joint Tenants which means you both own All of your home.
Which in traditional sole marriage and 2.4 kids isn’t an issue whilst you are both fit and well.
When the joint owner dies, no matter what your Will states it CAN only go to its joint owner in its entirety.
Its after this event that things can change quite dramatically in terms of your children benefitting.
- If your spouse remarries then dies before their new spouse then your house passes to them, meaning everything you worked for to leave to your loved ones will only benefit strangers you may have never met.
- The problems that can often come in later in life such as either or both of you needing care. This means as your home is treated as both your asset in full it can be used to fund your care down to the current threshold of £23,250. This is a very small pot compared to the value of an average house in todays market.
- If you are a blended family each with children from previous relationships and there are many now that are and buy your new home jointly that’s causes a more difficult situation. What happens is that after the first one dies the survivor is the sole owner of your home, if they change their Will (many do!) or die without a Will then the only children that will inherit are the Survivors with no recompense in law for the deceased children.
If this is a potential or current issue for your family then you need to look at how easy this simple solution is. It provides that certainty that your children will receive what you wish for them to inherit.
A Protective Property Trust as the name suggests protects ALL the family members the surviving spouse has the security of the family home and the children that they will inherit from each parent.
If one of you is in a difficult situation whether that be that your family is suffering with a spouse with Dementia or a victim of abuse these can still be done so whilst you are both alive this is a very cost effective solution to what can be a life changing situation.
Until recently, if you were a beneficiary of a Right to Reside or Life Interest of a Will Trust, there was no need to register this with the HMRC.
The new legislation now means if you have had this benefit for 2 years after the death of your loved one, they now must be registered on HMRC Trust Registration Service or face financial penalty.
All of our Will Trusts will include this service, meaning you can be assured that we are looking after you from instruction to distribution.
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What our customers are saying
FAQ’s
Here’s a small selection of the recent things as Estate Planners we’ve been asked about.
I don’t need a will my family can sort it out can’t they?
Well yes they can, however, dying intestate which is the legal term for not having a Will and the laws that surround this are more complex.
And you have no say in who will inherit your estate, that no matter what you have to leave whether it be a house, a car, jewellery or money, do you really want the State to decide who gets what. It’s a sure fire way to cause a family disagreement when no one knows who you wanted to have items of sentimental value.
There is also a more important reason if you have children and don’t appoint Guardians, then the Courts will decide who brings them up. That doesn’t guarantee it will be who you would have chosen and until a court appointed guardian is in place, they could well be in Local Authority Care.
We are thinking of putting the house in our children’s name.
In an ideal world this seems such a simple thing to do. The reality is very different.
If your house is owned by your children, this means it’s their asset and you are no longer the owners.
Which means should they divorce it will be used in the financial settlement award to the other spouse. If they get into debt it will be used as an asset to settle this. If they like, they can re-mortgage or secure finance against it.
They can sell your home without any consent from you, leaving you without the roof that you worked hard to put over your heads.
It will all go to my Partner won’t it?
Well, unfortunately unless you own your property and bank accounts as Joint owners then this may not happen as English Law doesn’t recognise “Common Law” no matter how long you have been together. They only way that you can guarantee they will get what you want them to have is by writing a Will.
I made a Will leaving something to my children before I got married.
In an age where blended families are common, many people are surprised that the act of Marriage invalidates your will, so even if you made one previous to your wedding then you will die intestate. That means that the law leaves the first £270,000 and half of everything else to your new Spouse. Also, once someone has inherited, its theirs to do with as they please and a surprisingly high number of step children are either accidentally or deliberately disinherited.
We aren’t old enough for LPAs or a Will.
None of us like to think there will be a time when we can’t manage without help, whether that be someone doing your shopping or paying your bills. Or even worse who will look after your loved ones when you can’t.
Unfortunately, dozens of people in their 40’s are being diagnosed with dementia, some as young as 23.
That’s without the effects that Viruses like CV19 can cause leading to long term care needs.
Also, accidents happen and none of us have a crystal ball to foresee what’s around the corner.