SA Right of a Beneficiary to a Portion of Mother's Deceased Estate?

[Leona]

My mother passed away in Sept 2014 and left her only asset (house and approx 22 acres) to be distributed as follows - house and 1 hectare of land to me and my sister and the balance of the land to my brother who is also the executor of will and the deceased estate. The land cannot be subdivided and they're sold to be divided as per my mother's wishes.

What rights do my sister and myself have in arranging for the sale of the property as we do not believe all is being done to have this matter finalised. The house is an old farm house built in 1946 and is slowly deteriorating and we would like it to be sold asap.

 

[JS79]

Hi Leona,

Have a quick read of this article : Are You a Beneficiary of a Will? Know Your Rights [QLD] - Legal Blog - LawAnswers.com.au
which will basically outline the rights you have as a beneficiary to your mother's will.

After reading the article, if you think you need legal advice see Get Connected with the Right Lawyer for You
to be connected to a local lawyer who specialises in wills and probate.

Good luck.

 

[Leona]

Thank you. From reading this information I now require some further information.

My mother has now been deceased for over 12 months. As the property could not be distributed as per her will the property as a whole has to be sold and the funds distributed as follows -
(A) the value of the house and one hectare of the land as per agent valuation jointly to my sister and myself.
(B) the value of the remaining land as per agent valuation to my brother who is the executor of the will.

An offer was received from the executor's son which was less than capital value and was not accepted by the executor. The offer was then increased to capital value and once again was not accepted.
Does the executor and beneficiary have to disclose any offers received to the other beneficiaries and in the case of the offer coming from a direct relative of the executor can an offer not be accepted when the executor is a beneficiary?

 

[Leona]

Thank you. From reading this information I now require some further information.

My mother has now been deceased for over 12 months. As the property could not be distributed as per her will the property as a whole has to be sold and the funds distributed as follows -
(A) the value of the house and one hectare of the land as per agent valuation jointly to my sister and myself.
(B) the value of the remaining land as per agent valuation to my brother who is the executor of the will.

An offer was received from the executor's son which was less than capital value and was not accepted by the executor. The offer was then increased to capital value and once again was not accepted.
Does the executor and beneficiary have to disclose any offers received to the other beneficiaries and in the case of the offer coming from a direct relative of the executor can an offer not be accepted when the executor is a beneficiary?

I suppose what I am asking is the possibility of there being a conflict of interest in that the executor is wanting more money for the land as the house my sister and myself have inherited is deteriorating and decreasing in value.