Inheritance tax and/ or capital gains tax

[SamDand]

I am an only child. My father died last August with no will and my mother has just died, again with no will. Their house is worth about 450k as is but it Needs a bit of work. If I clear / tidy / professionally clean and get decorated, new kitchen, new carpets etc which will cost about 25k, I could make another 50k so it would be worth about 500k.

My question is, is it worth it or will any gain be lost in IHT or CGT?

[Pezza54]

Before thinking about working on the house you need to gain ownership of it. You, or your solicitor, need to appoint an administrator by applying to Probate to grant the letters of administration.
IHT forms need to be completed and sent to HMRC and IHT paid. For IHT the value of the estate is worked out at the time of death. It sounds as if your mother's estate will benefit from the Residence Nil Rate Tax Band and that your father's RNRB can be transferred meaning your mother's estate could have a nil rate band totaling £1m
To avoid CGT you need to reside in the house, carry out improvements to it and then sell it.
My advice is to appoint a solicitor to apply for probate and complete IHT forms. There are several forms to complete and mistakes can cause delays. You will need a conveyancing solicitor to insert your name on the deeds.

[SamDand]

Thank you. Very helpful. Yes will appoint a solicitor.