- Original Poster
- #1
Hello All,
Im hoping someone with a legal background could just have a browse at this thread and let me know if my suspicions are justified or not, as the case may be.
In 2006 a close friend of my mother-in-law sold her house on an equity release scheme, for the sum of just under £250k. For the purposes of this thread Id like to call her Mrs W. At the time of the sale Mrs W was 86 years old and a bit short of cash, but didnt want to move into a care home, despite her increasing need for help with daily tasks. She wanted to stay at home, and the extra cash would allow her to pay for various odd-jobs to be done around the house. A deal was agreed for the sale of the house, allowing her to stay in the house until her death. The payments schedule was agreed as £50k per year to be allocated to her in the years 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009 and £49,995 in 2010. The sale was NOT done with any of the national equity release agencies, rather it was an agreement with someone whose main background is in property sales and rental. For the purposes of this thread Id like to call the purchaser Mr X.
To coincide with the sale of Mrs Xs property, Mr X asked for her Will to be updated to register his interest in the house, and the Land Registry deeds were also adjusted accordingly. The £250k value of the house for the purposes of the sale was arrived at BY THE SON of Mr X, despite the value of other similar house on the roads being in the £450-£600k range. The new Will was drawn up by THE OTHER SON of Mr X, who was at that time a practicing Solicitor. The Executor of the new will was THE WIFE of Mr X, and the other beneficiary of any other proceeds arising from the sale of Mrs Ws estate was THE DAUGHTER of Mr X.
So, we have a Will that was drawn-up by one son, on a valuation of a house done by the other son, whereby the father was the purchaser, the wife was the executor, and the daughter was the other beneficiary of any remaining funds. Five members of the same family Mr X and his family are not related to Mrs W in any way, shape or form.
Payments of £50k were made in both 2006 and 2007. The remaining payments were due in 2008, 2009, and 2010 these payments should have been £50k each year, but have NOT been made. In fact, the only other payments made were approximately £9k, these were made sporadically between 2008 and 2012. So, the outstanding balance due to Mrs W at this time is £141k. This figure does not include any loss of interest from the payments never received. Mr X has said that he has been unable to make the agreed payments (£50k * 3) due to his own financial situation.
So, my main queries are;
1) Bearing in mind the situation regarding the drawing-up of the new Will, is this not a massive conflict of interest on the part of the Solicitor?
2) Bearing in mind that Mr X has broken the agreement for the full payment of the house between 2006-2010, what action can be taken to void the initial contract and allow Mrs W to sell her house to a more reputable equity release firm?
3) There is a clause in the sale of Mrs Ws house which states that if Mr X has not paid the full agreed price by the time of her death, then he must make the full payment to Mrs Ws estate. This would then be given to the main beneficiary of Mrs Ws estate, which is the daughter of Mr X. Is this legal?
Mrs W is still alive, although at the age of 92 time is clearly not on her side. She does not wish to go into a care home, and this situation is causing her great distress. Wed like to help her to draw this messy situation to a close, and although a new legal firm has been engaged to take a look at the situation, Id very much appreciate any other thoughts or opinions.
Thanks
Im hoping someone with a legal background could just have a browse at this thread and let me know if my suspicions are justified or not, as the case may be.
In 2006 a close friend of my mother-in-law sold her house on an equity release scheme, for the sum of just under £250k. For the purposes of this thread Id like to call her Mrs W. At the time of the sale Mrs W was 86 years old and a bit short of cash, but didnt want to move into a care home, despite her increasing need for help with daily tasks. She wanted to stay at home, and the extra cash would allow her to pay for various odd-jobs to be done around the house. A deal was agreed for the sale of the house, allowing her to stay in the house until her death. The payments schedule was agreed as £50k per year to be allocated to her in the years 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009 and £49,995 in 2010. The sale was NOT done with any of the national equity release agencies, rather it was an agreement with someone whose main background is in property sales and rental. For the purposes of this thread Id like to call the purchaser Mr X.
To coincide with the sale of Mrs Xs property, Mr X asked for her Will to be updated to register his interest in the house, and the Land Registry deeds were also adjusted accordingly. The £250k value of the house for the purposes of the sale was arrived at BY THE SON of Mr X, despite the value of other similar house on the roads being in the £450-£600k range. The new Will was drawn up by THE OTHER SON of Mr X, who was at that time a practicing Solicitor. The Executor of the new will was THE WIFE of Mr X, and the other beneficiary of any other proceeds arising from the sale of Mrs Ws estate was THE DAUGHTER of Mr X.
So, we have a Will that was drawn-up by one son, on a valuation of a house done by the other son, whereby the father was the purchaser, the wife was the executor, and the daughter was the other beneficiary of any remaining funds. Five members of the same family Mr X and his family are not related to Mrs W in any way, shape or form.
Payments of £50k were made in both 2006 and 2007. The remaining payments were due in 2008, 2009, and 2010 these payments should have been £50k each year, but have NOT been made. In fact, the only other payments made were approximately £9k, these were made sporadically between 2008 and 2012. So, the outstanding balance due to Mrs W at this time is £141k. This figure does not include any loss of interest from the payments never received. Mr X has said that he has been unable to make the agreed payments (£50k * 3) due to his own financial situation.
So, my main queries are;
1) Bearing in mind the situation regarding the drawing-up of the new Will, is this not a massive conflict of interest on the part of the Solicitor?
2) Bearing in mind that Mr X has broken the agreement for the full payment of the house between 2006-2010, what action can be taken to void the initial contract and allow Mrs W to sell her house to a more reputable equity release firm?
3) There is a clause in the sale of Mrs Ws house which states that if Mr X has not paid the full agreed price by the time of her death, then he must make the full payment to Mrs Ws estate. This would then be given to the main beneficiary of Mrs Ws estate, which is the daughter of Mr X. Is this legal?
Mrs W is still alive, although at the age of 92 time is clearly not on her side. She does not wish to go into a care home, and this situation is causing her great distress. Wed like to help her to draw this messy situation to a close, and although a new legal firm has been engaged to take a look at the situation, Id very much appreciate any other thoughts or opinions.
Thanks
