Property left in a will and non compliance by one of the parties

[Dairymilk10]

Hi, my brother and I have been left my mums house in her will, I have applied for probate and the house is on the market, the issue is that my brother lives at the house, he is not working, connotation afford to buy me out, he is not allowing viewings to happen and will not answer the phone to me.
he has not transferred any of the bills to his name and is just completely ignoring all attempts to sort it out.
I live 150 miles away so it is not easy for me to keep going tithe house.

what I need to find out is how I can enforce an eviction of the property, he has no moral fibre and feels that the world owe him to live cost free . What can I do to try and make him see sense and to sell the property to allow us both to get on with our lives, I have suggested that he looks at flats that he could buy outright with his share of the proceeds, but he just ignores all. I am tearing my hair out with him
please can anyone help or offer advice.

[MissFM]

Re: Property left in a will and non compliance by one of the parties

Hi Dairymilk

Firstly I'm so sorry for your loss and that you have further family hassles at this sad time.

Did your mother name (an) executor(s) in her will? If so, who?

Has probate been granted?

[Dairymilk10]

Re: Property left in a will and non compliance by one of the parties

Hi my brother was named executor, but does not want to do it , so I have applied for administrator rights and for probate, waiting for them both to come back at the moment

[teaboy2]

Re: Property left in a will and non compliance by one of the parties

Hi my brother was named executor, but does not want to do it , so I have applied for administrator rights and for probate, waiting for them both to come back at the moment

So sorry for your loss, but i do have a couple of questions to ask.

Did your brother consent to selling the house? If not then why have you put it up for sale, when you only own half?

From what you have said, its sounds to me as though he doesn't consent to the sale. If he also owns half the house, then i can not see how you can have him evicted, the law is likely on his side since hes living there and has been for however many years prior to your mothers passing.

[meellis]

Re: Property left in a will and non compliance by one of the parties

Are you sure your brother isn't just grieving a bit more than you. If you have moved 150 miles away it sounds like you have cut the apron strings more than him so maybe you should try a bit of compassion and understanding to get things moving. Also be careful about the statement that he as no moral fibre and believes the world owes him a living. He isn't the one trying to evict somebody and force a sale through to get there hands on the proceeds of a sale. Don't get me wrong you need to be on top of this so it doesn't just fester and get worse but you really need to look at your approach.

[teaboy2]

Re: Property left in a will and non compliance by one of the parties

Are you sure your brother isn't just grieving a bit more than you. If you have moved 150 miles away it sounds like you have cut the apron strings more than him so maybe you should try a bit of compassion and understanding to get things moving. Also be careful about the statement that he as no moral fibre and believes the world owes him a living. He isn't the one trying to evict somebody and force a sale through to get there hands on the proceeds of a sale. Don't get me wrong you need to be on top of this so it doesn't just fester and get worse but you really need to look at your approach.

Have to agree with mellis, i had seen this thread yesterday before anyone had posted, and was going to write a somewhat strong response along the lines of what you yourself have pointed out.

I suspect the OP's brother is grieving or may in fact have mental health problems such as depression - Which would explain why he did not what to be executioner, and why he appears to be burying his head in the sand when it comes to the bills. That fact their mother wanted him as executioner, also says something too. Perhaps she trusted the OP's brother more with her estate.

150 miles is what 3 1/2 drive, its not hard to travel and stay over for a week or on a few weekends at the house and actually help your brother with his duties as executioner. because if he is suffering depression or still grieving, then forcing them to enact their responsibilities by providing them support and encouragement is the best thing for them - Not eviction or selling of the house that your brother calls HOME and may well have been the only home he's known.

So yes, i agree Mellis. A bit more compassion and support would to a world of good and go along way.

[enaid]

Re: Property left in a will and non compliance by one of the parties

Was there nothing stipulated in the will as to if your brother could remain in the house?

[meellis]

Re: Property left in a will and non compliance by one of the parties

Teaboy your typo of executioner isn't great, if the brother has got problems then support is what he needs. If he is a genuine waste of time, I don't know I can only gauge an opinion based on the original post, then some of the comments wouldn't come across as support if you went for an eviction. Obviuosly dairy milk you know the situation far greater than anybody here but maybe question your own motives, are you desperate for the money, will the sale be necessary to pay any taxes or fees or do you just want to get closure on the situation and feel it has been dragged out.

[des8]

Re: Property left in a will and non compliance by one of the parties

[QUOTE=teaboy2;416886]

you only own half?

he also owns half the house,

Whilst agreeing with the sentiments expressed above, I understand that not only are executor(s) responsible for administration of the estate, but ownership of the property passes to the executor(s)
until the distribution is made.
This means, by the way, the executor has certain responsibilities like insurance, council tax etc.

As he is the executor has your brother signed a form of renunciation?

[wales01man]

Re: Property left in a will and non compliance by one of the parties

If the will leaves equal shares of the Property to the brothers then legally do both have to agree to a sale?
If the Brother in the property refuse to sell then is the other entitled to rent so they both have a share of the asset,If the one brother refuses this the only way is legal?

[enquirer]

Re: Property left in a will and non compliance by one of the parties

Des8 makes the essential point. If the Brother does not wish to fulfill his duties as Executor, he must formally renounce that role. If he won't do so, then he must be removed via the courts.

Dairymilk10 would be wise to press this matter hard, for as Des8 points out, the executor holds the estate in trust, and is responsible for utility bills, Council Tax and so forth. Time will diminish the estate, and may land the recalcitrant brother in even greater trouble.

[krypton]

Re: Property left in a will and non compliance by one of the parties

Hi, my brother and I have been left my mums house in her will, I have applied for probate and the house is on the market, the issue is that my brother lives at the house, he is not working, connotation afford to buy me out, he is not allowing viewings to happen and will not answer the phone to me..

So your brother is named as the executor in the will ?

Who has put the house onto the market? You ? You don't even have the grant of probate in your name do you?

It's little wonder why he would not talk to you right now if that is your attitude. You're trying to revoke him as executor in the will, undermine him by you applying for probate, trying to sell the house on the market and arrange internal viewings.

You can't travel 150 miles to meet with your brother and talk it over...or is it a case that you don't wish to?

Firstly you'll have to go to the higher courts to have him removed as executor. You could then find yourself heading for a costly contentious matter soon after that. He owns half the property and lives there.

If you say you have the moral fibre over him. Accept the fact he is the executor and the one your mother chose to execute her will and then perhaps go talk to him.

If he is not in a position to buy you out right now and you are aware of that, there are many options you can explore. Just because your mother left you both the property there's not always the need to sell immediately. Perhaps both of you can retain joint ownership of the property, allowing him to live there with some sort of rental agreement with you?

Less haste, more speed.

[atendoftether]

Re: Property left in a will and non compliance by one of the parties

I am sorry but I think that you are being really heartless if you haven't even got probate the death must be pretty recent.Is this your brother's only home, did he in fact look after your mother before she died if so I would be very surprised if you could ever get an eviction. My sister and I also got a very similar situation in that she wanted to sell and I didn't as I wanted to pass my half to my children, also she didn't want me to buy her out. She uses the house more than me but I pay half of all statutory costs via a joint account as we were left the house 50:50, but as reasonable adults this is the compromise and we may be able to get rental income later on to offset costs. You have no right to sell the property from under him as you only own half , did you tell the Estate Agent that you owned it outright no one in their right mind would buy in those circumstances. What I think you need is mediation that you need to go to with an open mind, asking him to pay rent I think is unrealistic and unhelpful, but perhaps renting a room to a tenant might provide some of the income that you seem motivated by. Also if your brother moved out he may well be unable to find somewhere to live in comfort especially after capital gains tax. Incidentally I thought council tax was not payable on properties in probate and if he is not working then he will only be paying 20%. Your brother may be viewed by you as work shy and lazy, though you do not show yourself in a particularly good light, but it was your mothers wish I imagine that you could sort it out if she wanted the property sold she would have specified it in in her will as a condition.