Deceased estate

[pnefc01]

Hi all

My father-in-law passed away some five years and was survived by his wife. They owned their house jointly but nothing else of value. She continued to live in the house until she also passed away recently. She has left a will.

We didn't do anything about title deeds when he passed away and need to know what our process would be now.

e.g. just apply for probate and sell the house or do we need to do something (with a solicitor) to manage his name still being on deeds etc?

TIA Gary

 

[Tim W]

Did he leave a will back when?
Was she a co-owner of the house (eg a joint tenant)?

 

[pnefc01]

Hi Tim

Yes he did and they were joint tenants.

Cheers Gary

 

[Tim W]

Hi Tim

Yes he did and they were joint tenants.

Cheers Gary

OK, so, in the normal course of events, the house became "all hers" upon his death.

Modest Estates are do-able by switched on people who can put in the time.
Experience tells me however, that many (even most) DIY executors
underestimate the time involved,and many over-estimate their ability.

And... a great many misunderstand the "official bits".
For one thing, the executor can't do anything until probate is granted
That's the point at which the executor formally takes office,
whereas people think the nomination in the will is all it takes...

While every state (and a number of private practices)
publish free material in the ballpark of "what to do when someone dies",
I suggest that you have at least one sit-down with a solicitor
(not necessarily, the one who did the will),
if only to ensure that the will is technically valid
(DIYs and invalid amendments and codicils can be a problem)
and that the executor is both willing and able to take on the job.

 

[Atticus]

do we need to do something (with a solicitor) to manage his name still being on deeds etc?

My own experience a few years ago with a *similar* situation (it was not a deceased estate) ... We had to sell the house when mum needed to go into care. Dad had died 10 years prior but his name was still on title. In our case, the conveyancer we engaged handled that for us as part of settling the house sale.