44 thoughts on “Deed of Variation: Your Questions Answered”
My dad passed in Dec and his will was 14 years old. It split the family home between my older sister and I. The outdated will doesn’t reflect dads wishes nor our changed family circumstances.
Since his will was made I have had a series of health issues and have been diagnosed with a life long disability. I receive PIP and if the Will was updated I would be classed as a vulnerable beneficiary.
I was extremely close to my dad and gave up my self employment (what was left of it as my health had severely impacted my work) to care for him after Covid restrictions lifted. I have rented a social housing 1 bed flat for the last decade which has been riddled with 9 years of disrepair (damp and mould). I have had numerous court cases and my landlord is still in breach of a court order, but I haven’t had the mental strength with dad dying to deal with it. I received no support battling it, so it takes a lot out of me.
My sister estranged herself after the tragic death of her husband in 2019, but she became increasingly hostile and abusive to me, so much so my GP contacted social services after dad died. Now, upon his death I’m legally bound to her and it keeps me up at night. She wants to sell the family home, but dad had promised me a life interest in it as I was the youngest, I was brought up in there (as my siblings) I’m safe there and my older brother lives next door, who is my support (now I’m on medication and need emotional support). My neighbours know me since I was a child. My sister moved out 30 plus years ago. She has a 7 bed house with the mortgage paid off (I actually raised her 1/4 of her house price fundraising for her sick husband which she used the funds after his death to pay off her mortgage – which I was thrilled I was able to do for her, but the stress of raising this and meeting her expectations took a massive toll on me. I also lost two contracted jobs helping her to raise money).
What is killing me is that dads wishes (and my late mum before him) were not for my sister to sell the house if one of their children needed the home, if they faced times of hardship or burden (written in my my mums will). Now dads gone, it’s like my sister has become a warlord and a bully, making all the decisions without realising the impact on me or my brother.
She will have a massive windfall if the house is sold, but she has no moral claim or connection to it, nor to me, her younger sister. She has 4 adult kids. I have no partner, no children, I live a very frugal life. My parents only asset was the family home, they were very humble and loving parents. My sister was very hostile as a teenager and violent towards my brother.
But the only way I’ve been told by a solicitor is to buy her out of her 50% or pay her rent (neither are options for me as I can’t afford both). Could I ask her for a deed of variation so that she will own 25% (which is what Intestacy would have given her) and then my brothers could try raise the money to buy her out as she would still want to sell?
I know that if dad wasn’t so sick in the years leading to his death, he would have updated his will, but my brothers and I shielded him from my sisters behaviour as it would have broken his heart. Much to my detriment now, but I wanted to honour my dads last few years by making sure he was peaceful and happy in the home he and my mum worked hard to buy and to maintain in the hope it would remain a family home as much as one of us needed it.
My dad would be turning in his grave in if he knew how hostile my sister is being and I haven’t had time to grieve yet, nor my brothers. I would love to give up my damp and mould riddled flat, but my Dr has told me I would make myself voluntarily homeless despite not being able to live there because it’s unfit for habitation. I’m still paying rent and all the bills.
To finish: could I ask my sister to consider a deed of variation to reflect dads wishes (although he wanted me to stay at the family home for however long – so a life interest would see my sister receiving no money from it), to reduce her share to 25%, my brothers raise the money to buy her out, or I would say to her that I want to bring a claim under the inheritance act as she would be receiving a windfall and I want to just have a safe home to live in, next to my brother (my other brother works abroad, but splits his time abroad and the family home).
My brothers are older and have already been given ‘gifts’ in their lifetime from dad. I have read the legislation under the IH act 1975 and I feel I have very strong evidence to support Section 3 of the act? I have no savings / assets and I was going to ask a charity for further advice on how to bring a claim, but I thought that if I asked her for a deed of variation and the reasons why, perhaps this might help me later on down the line if she refuses and I do bring about a claim?
Apologies for the length of this and thank you for your time.
Your sister could enter into a Deed of Variation to create a life interest for you in her share of the property, or alternatively she could use the Deed of Variation to gift her share of the property to you so that you will own 100% of the equity in the property. However she would need to enter into the Deed of Variation of her own free will and accord and she should ideally take her own legal and financial advice before so doing.
However, it sounds from what you have said that it is unlikely that she would enter into a Deed of Variation voluntarily, and if this is the case you would therefore need to consider an inheritance act claim. If so, you would need to seek advice from a civil litigation solicitor. You can contact the civil litigation department: https://cunningtons.co.uk/services/civil-litigation/probate-will-disputes/.
My mother’s will arranges for any assets she has to be divided equally between her three children.
Should I die before my mother, could it be arranged for my share to go directly to my 2 sons and husband, with the same proviso for my sisters and their dependents?
Could my husband, still within the 2 year allowance and after receiving any funds, then arrange for a deed of variation for his share to go to our 2 sons, so that he does not have to pay Inheritance Tax?
The answer is yes, but your mother would need to state in her Will that if her daughter dies before her, then the daughter’s share goes to her son-in-law and her two grandsons. Likewise your mother can do something similar for her other two daughters, but it would need to be clearly stated in her Will.
Within two years of the date of her death, any beneficiary can enact a deed of variation redirecting their inheritance to other beneficiaries. If the Deed of Variation is done in the right way (there are formalities that need to be complied with that make it valid), then if anyone redirecting their share dies within 7 years of the Deed then the assets they have given under the Deed of Variation do not form part of their estate for the purposes of Inheritance Tax.
Hi. My mother died leaving her estate to be divided equally between my sister and me. Her house is part of her estate and it looks like this has increased in value since her death 18 months ago, so some capital gains tax will be due. My sister and I are considering having a deed of variation drawn up to give some of the estate to a number of charities. Would it be possible to reduce our CGT amount by somehow directing part of the house to the charities but while still defining the actual figure (in £) going to each of the charities ? Thanks
Thank you for your enquiry. Yes, it is possible to redirect part of the estate to charities and then appropriate a share of the property to them prior to the sale for Capital Gains Tax purposes. Please contact a member of our team to discuss your particular matter further.
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My dad passed in Dec and his will was 14 years old. It split the family home between my older sister and I. The outdated will doesn’t reflect dads wishes nor our changed family circumstances.
Since his will was made I have had a series of health issues and have been diagnosed with a life long disability. I receive PIP and if the Will was updated I would be classed as a vulnerable beneficiary.
I was extremely close to my dad and gave up my self employment (what was left of it as my health had severely impacted my work) to care for him after Covid restrictions lifted. I have rented a social housing 1 bed flat for the last decade which has been riddled with 9 years of disrepair (damp and mould). I have had numerous court cases and my landlord is still in breach of a court order, but I haven’t had the mental strength with dad dying to deal with it. I received no support battling it, so it takes a lot out of me.
My sister estranged herself after the tragic death of her husband in 2019, but she became increasingly hostile and abusive to me, so much so my GP contacted social services after dad died. Now, upon his death I’m legally bound to her and it keeps me up at night. She wants to sell the family home, but dad had promised me a life interest in it as I was the youngest, I was brought up in there (as my siblings) I’m safe there and my older brother lives next door, who is my support (now I’m on medication and need emotional support). My neighbours know me since I was a child. My sister moved out 30 plus years ago. She has a 7 bed house with the mortgage paid off (I actually raised her 1/4 of her house price fundraising for her sick husband which she used the funds after his death to pay off her mortgage – which I was thrilled I was able to do for her, but the stress of raising this and meeting her expectations took a massive toll on me. I also lost two contracted jobs helping her to raise money).
What is killing me is that dads wishes (and my late mum before him) were not for my sister to sell the house if one of their children needed the home, if they faced times of hardship or burden (written in my my mums will). Now dads gone, it’s like my sister has become a warlord and a bully, making all the decisions without realising the impact on me or my brother.
She will have a massive windfall if the house is sold, but she has no moral claim or connection to it, nor to me, her younger sister. She has 4 adult kids. I have no partner, no children, I live a very frugal life. My parents only asset was the family home, they were very humble and loving parents. My sister was very hostile as a teenager and violent towards my brother.
But the only way I’ve been told by a solicitor is to buy her out of her 50% or pay her rent (neither are options for me as I can’t afford both). Could I ask her for a deed of variation so that she will own 25% (which is what Intestacy would have given her) and then my brothers could try raise the money to buy her out as she would still want to sell?
I know that if dad wasn’t so sick in the years leading to his death, he would have updated his will, but my brothers and I shielded him from my sisters behaviour as it would have broken his heart. Much to my detriment now, but I wanted to honour my dads last few years by making sure he was peaceful and happy in the home he and my mum worked hard to buy and to maintain in the hope it would remain a family home as much as one of us needed it.
My dad would be turning in his grave in if he knew how hostile my sister is being and I haven’t had time to grieve yet, nor my brothers. I would love to give up my damp and mould riddled flat, but my Dr has told me I would make myself voluntarily homeless despite not being able to live there because it’s unfit for habitation. I’m still paying rent and all the bills.
To finish: could I ask my sister to consider a deed of variation to reflect dads wishes (although he wanted me to stay at the family home for however long – so a life interest would see my sister receiving no money from it), to reduce her share to 25%, my brothers raise the money to buy her out, or I would say to her that I want to bring a claim under the inheritance act as she would be receiving a windfall and I want to just have a safe home to live in, next to my brother (my other brother works abroad, but splits his time abroad and the family home).
My brothers are older and have already been given ‘gifts’ in their lifetime from dad. I have read the legislation under the IH act 1975 and I feel I have very strong evidence to support Section 3 of the act? I have no savings / assets and I was going to ask a charity for further advice on how to bring a claim, but I thought that if I asked her for a deed of variation and the reasons why, perhaps this might help me later on down the line if she refuses and I do bring about a claim?
Apologies for the length of this and thank you for your time.
Thank you for your comment.
Your sister could enter into a Deed of Variation to create a life interest for you in her share of the property, or alternatively she could use the Deed of Variation to gift her share of the property to you so that you will own 100% of the equity in the property. However she would need to enter into the Deed of Variation of her own free will and accord and she should ideally take her own legal and financial advice before so doing.
However, it sounds from what you have said that it is unlikely that she would enter into a Deed of Variation voluntarily, and if this is the case you would therefore need to consider an inheritance act claim. If so, you would need to seek advice from a civil litigation solicitor. You can contact the civil litigation department: https://cunningtons.co.uk/services/civil-litigation/probate-will-disputes/.
Hello
My mother’s will arranges for any assets she has to be divided equally between her three children.
Should I die before my mother, could it be arranged for my share to go directly to my 2 sons and husband, with the same proviso for my sisters and their dependents?
Could my husband, still within the 2 year allowance and after receiving any funds, then arrange for a deed of variation for his share to go to our 2 sons, so that he does not have to pay Inheritance Tax?
Many thanks
I
Thank you for your comment.
The answer is yes, but your mother would need to state in her Will that if her daughter dies before her, then the daughter’s share goes to her son-in-law and her two grandsons. Likewise your mother can do something similar for her other two daughters, but it would need to be clearly stated in her Will.
Within two years of the date of her death, any beneficiary can enact a deed of variation redirecting their inheritance to other beneficiaries. If the Deed of Variation is done in the right way (there are formalities that need to be complied with that make it valid), then if anyone redirecting their share dies within 7 years of the Deed then the assets they have given under the Deed of Variation do not form part of their estate for the purposes of Inheritance Tax.
Please feel free to contact our Wills & Probate specialists if you need further help with this.
Hi. My mother died leaving her estate to be divided equally between my sister and me.
Her house is part of her estate and it looks like this has increased in value since her death 18 months ago, so some capital gains tax will be due. My sister and I are considering having a deed of variation drawn up to give some of the estate to a number of charities. Would it be possible to reduce our CGT amount by somehow directing part of the house to the charities but while still defining the actual figure (in £) going to each of the charities ?
Thanks
Thank you for your enquiry. Yes, it is possible to redirect part of the estate to charities and then appropriate a share of the property to them prior to the sale for Capital Gains Tax purposes. Please contact a member of our team to discuss your particular matter further.