NSW Children who have been paying expenses of parents - right to equity in property?

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MJ-

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23 January 2019
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Hi !

Just wanted to check if anybody might know whether my siblings and I may be entitled to equity with our parents assets -

Our parents' property was purchased in 2013 for around $980,000, using profit from a house bought in 1995 with our parents money. There is no mortgage on the property per se, but there is a significant business loan secured against the property (around $700,000).

Since early 2016 our father has not had a job and has not been earning any income. Since around 2014 my brother has been director of the 'family company' and has been mainly responsible for income, alongside my mother, since that time. The business profits have been paying all household bills, with any shortfall being covered by the business loan. Recently, since October 2018, my mother was admitted to hospital with brain tumours and has not been able to earn any income since, and my brother's earning ability has been severely impacted because of it (their business kind of works in partnership). Since October, I have been paying for my father's credit card bills, council rate payments, groceries for the household, and other related household expenses. I have also gotten my sister to start paying for other expenses to share the load.

Unfortunately at this time I am still a lowly law student, and although I do have some savings, I do not have the earning capacity to completely cover all household expenses comfortably without those repayments significantly affecting my lifestyle and future financial stability. I do not want to force our parents to sell the family home, considering that it is the main asset that the family has and may increase in value for future sale. However, I do not want my financial contributions and efforts (as well as my siblings contributions) to go unrecognised. It may be the case the my mother passes in the relatively near future, which would mean that the house goes entirely to my deadbeat, money pit father. We don't want to have to wait for our father to pass (he's set to live forever at this rate, powered by sheer spite) for our efforts to be recognised, especially considering that by that time a significant amount of the value of the property could be lost through sale and financial mismanagement by my father.

Do we have any legal leg to stand on? Is there a way that we can make a contract to have our contributions recognised and the possibility of equity being gained in this house just in case it is sold in the near future?

Thank you :)
 

Rod

Lawyer
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27 May 2014
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One option is an inter vivos gift.
 

Tim W

Lawyer
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28 April 2014
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Paying a relative's bills does not create equity,
nor testamentary entitlement as of right.
If you want to be confident, get them to make wills.
And a proper succession plan for the business.

Nothing else you do will trump the Intestacy Rules.

--> Have this done by an actual solicitor. Do not do it yourself.
 
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