Am I obliged to sell a property to the tenant

[paddyhaig]

Am I obliged to sell a property to the tenant if it is left to us jointly in probate? Apparently the property has been appraised at a specific price by an independent surveyor and the tenant wants to give me 50% of that price. I believe the property if cleaned up might be worth more. It's value in the deeds seems to be considerably more. I'm not sure what to do?
I should add, the tenant is my brother. The estate was left Intestate. And we are both signed up as administrators.

[des8]

Re: Am I obliged to sell a property to the tenant

First of all there is no reason why you should sell your share if the other beneficiary doesn't want to sell.
You could rent your half to him.
Secondly if you decide to sell, obtain your own valuation for the property as if there was no sitting tenant

[paddyhaig]

Re: Am I obliged to sell a property to the tenant

Firstly, thank you so very much for replying to my query. Secondly :-) Is the fact that my brother is living in the property as a sitting tenant in anyway detrimental to its value? I didn't think about that when it was evaluated.

[des8]

Re: Am I obliged to sell a property to the tenant

I don't know.
Many years ago (my children would say in the Dark Ages) houses with sitting tenants were always cheaper. but with current laws and the rental market buoyant(?) that might no longer be the case.

[paddyhaig]

Re: Am I obliged to sell a property to the tenant

Thank you very much for input. I am very grateful.

[MissFM]

Re: Am I obliged to sell a property to the tenant

Hi Paddy,

Just a couple of thoughts to add to Des's customary good counsel:

I'm not so sure that your brother is a "sitting tenant" in terms of having a protected tenancy under the 1977 act. It depends on several factors - see here:

https://www.commercialtrust.co.uk/bt...itting-tenant/

As to whether you're obliged to sell your share in the property to him - I agree absolutely with Des, no you're not.

On the subject of valuation, I think (from experience) that you will only get a true market value of the property if it's put on the open market and it's in both your interests to optimise it's value. It's incredibly easy for someone who lives in a property to massage any valuation downwards if they are so minded (I have seen this happen in divorce where one party wishes to buy the other out, with very unequal eventual financial outcomes).

I'm sorry you are going through such a plethora of difficulties at the moment and wish you the very best of luck x

[paddyhaig]

Re: Am I obliged to sell a property to the tenant

Sorry to double post. It's just an after thought. Would you know, if the tenant claims to have no lease or paperwork would this cause me issues in the valuing of the property? What has happened is that my brother lives in an investment property that was owned by my late mother. He lives on the welfare state and has done so for some 10 years. (He's a mooch). My mother apparently died intestate. And my brother was into her paperwork and other stuff before I could say likedy splikedy and hired a lawyer that was instructed to apply for letters of administration for both of us. This lawyer turned out to be rather difficult for me to deal with. So I had to hire another lawyer to act as my POA as I live in the United States. Valuations were made on the properties. The valuation made on the flat my brother lives in was 35% lower than the figure supplied in the Title from the Land registry. However the assessors figure given for the house my mother lived in was about the same as the figure given in the land registry title. Both properties very close to one another. This kinda led me to believe that something was affecting the price of the flat quite significantly.

[MissFM]

Re: Am I obliged to sell a property to the tenant

If the property was an investment, it's likely your mother will have done something to protect her long term interests. 10 years ago it would have been unlikely in the extreme that he would have had a protected tenancy. Was he paying rent?

See here for the position re verbal contracts and tenant rights:

http://www.propertyinvestmentproject...tten-contract/

If your brother is as you describe then it does seem not unlikely that the property has become run down, hence the decline in value

[paddyhaig]

Re: Am I obliged to sell a property to the tenant

My brother I believe would of had to of shown the Housing Benefits Department something resembling a lease at somepoint for them to assist him monetarily. So the has to of been a lease at as I said some point. What I gathered happened was my father had owned the property as an investment. (He was apparently offered it by a friend of his) My brother got to live there. He's been more on than off the Welfare State for the last 30 years. My father passed away 3 years ago and left the house and flat to my mother. My brother has claimed he was paying a very low rent. Significantly lower than the flats around him. But says he has no lease. After the passing of my father my mother took ownership. My mother told me that she couldn't enforce the rent from my brother, this went on until she passed a couple of years later. My brother is not claiming that he has no documentation for the flat. I'm not going into the fact that I know my mother had a Will 35 years ago and some of the other issues of the paperwork dealings. Oddly my brother had built a small furnace in the back garden of my parents and used it to burn off scrap paper. You have to wonder. :-)

- - - Updated - - -

My brother I believe would of had to of shown the Housing Benefits Department something resembling a lease at somepoint for them to assist him monetarily. So the has to of been a lease at as I said some point. What I gathered happened was my father had owned the property as an investment. (He was apparently offered it by a friend of his) My brother got to live there. He's been more on than off the Welfare State for the last 30 years. My father passed away 3 years ago and left the house and flat to my mother. My brother has claimed he was paying a very low rent. Significantly lower than the flats around him. But says he has no lease. After the passing of my father my mother took ownership. My mother told me that she couldn't enforce the rent from my brother, this went on until she passed a couple of years later. My brother is now claiming that he has no documentation for the flat. I'm not going into the fact that I know my mother had a Will 35 years ago and some of the other issues of the paperwork dealings. Oddly my brother had built a small furnace in the back garden of my parents and used it to burn off scrap paper. You have to wonder. :-)

[des8]

Re: Am I obliged to sell a property to the tenant

Can your brother demonstrate that he was ACTUALLY paying rent?
You said your mother couldn't collect rent from him.
If she never did receive rent, and if he cannot show that rent was due (no lease), and if he cannot show any was paid THEN you might be able to claim he was living there under licence.

This is a much weaker position for him than as a tenant, protected or not.
Although of course you are owner of only half the building.

What would be the ideal outcome from your point of view?

[Tools]

Re: Am I obliged to sell a property to the tenant

Another consideration you have to take into account, if your brother has been"on & off" benefits, does he have the finances or funding in place to give you 50% of the value of the property, regardless of the true value? If not then then you may be better putting it onto the open market anyway.

[des8]

Re: Am I obliged to sell a property to the tenant

Hi Tools
On basis this was an investment property, and there were seemingly only two beneficiaries, I assume there are other assets for distribution which would cover the cost of a buy out.
Await OP's further clarification