Infographic: Transferring Property Ownership After Death
Today I’m bringing you an infographic created by I Will, a firm of solicitors who specialize in will writing. I published their previous infographic, An Essential Guide to Writing Your Will, back in 2017.
The infographic below is all about what happens with a property when the owner dies. As the graphic says, when the house is in joint ownership (as is typically the case with a married couple) and the surviving partner wants to go on living there, it is usually just a matter of notifying the Land Registry and (if relevant) the mortgage-holder.
If the house was in sole ownership, though – e.g. after the second partner dies – as the graphic says, the situation is more complicated, and there are various important things the executor will need to take into account.
It’s quite a long graphic, so please take a little time to scroll down it, and I’ll see you at the other end!
Thanks again to I Will Solicitors (not an affiliate link) for permission to use their graphic.
The company specializes in Islamic wills, but offers numerous legal services to people of all faiths and none, including Probate, Lasting Power of Attorney, Deputyships, and more. They say, ‘The writing of Sharia-compliant Islamic Wills is our specialty, but we are by no means a “Muslim-only” legal services provider.’
As I have said before on Pounds and Sense, where wills are concerned I strongly recommend using a properly qualified solicitor (and even more so where property is involved). I have had several experiences within my own family where failing to do this has caused serious delays and problems. In my view it really isn’t worth trying to save a few pounds by using a cut-price ‘will-writing service’ or attempting to do it yourself, not to mention all the hassle this can entail.
If you have any comments or questions, as ever, please do post them below.