Distribution of real estate in Victoria

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Alpine

Member
7 May 2021
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I am an executor / trustee and beneficiary of my mothers will. I have 3 other siblings who are also executors / trustees and we are all the only named beneficiaries of the will . All beneficiaries are to receive equal share of the of the estate. I have been given the option to appropriate as part of my share in my mothers residuary estate the farming real property (My other siblings had the same option for other properties and they exercised their options). A condition in the will was that the election to exercise the option within 6 months of my Mothers death (I did at the reading of the will approx. 2 weeks after death) and that the debt must be paid within 2 years following my mothers death. Also the wording of the will read that the value of the appropriation shall be agreed to between the beneficiary, and trustees and failing agreement then by a professional valuer appointed by my trustees or in the event of any dispute between my trustees and the beneficiary, then by a second valuer appointed by the first valuer.

It was agreed by the trustees to get valuations done on all properties. The date of the valuation used was the date of death (October 2020) and these values were used for probate. When the valuations were returned (The valuations were done approx 2 months after death) some beneficiaries / trustees were unhappy with the valuations. As a result the administration of the estate has dragged out (One trustee is disgruntled and has made it clear that they will drag the process out as long as they can) and as a result Property values continue to rise. Now my siblings want a second valuation and to change the date of valuation to something newer as some of them were receiving cash and their exposure hasn't benefited from the property market up tick. Can this be done? I would have thought that when I exercised my option to appropriate as part of my share the Farming property (aprrox 2 weeks following my mothers death) that the valuation would have been at either time of death or the date I exercised my right to appropriate my share in the named property?

Your thoughts would be appreciated