Posts by cardelladmin
Make sure your will writer is ‘qualified, insured and regulated’
More than six out of 10 people are unaware that will-writers who aren’t solicitors are unregulated and may have no insurance and very little experience. The Wills & Probate Consumer Research Report 2018 shows that only 37% of adults have made a will. It says the wills ‘take-up’ is skewed towards older age groups…
Read MoreInheritance tax exemption ‘should apply to cohabiting siblings’
Lord Lexden wants a change in the law to allow siblings who live together to have the same inheritance tax exemption as married couples and people with civil partnerships. Inheritance tax is set at 40% and becomes payable once the tax-free threshold of £325,000 has been passed. The exemption for married couples and…
Read MoreMost new homes to be sold as freehold – leases capped at £10
Most newbuild homes will in future be sold as freehold, while leases will be capped at £10. The new measures are part of a government clampdown on unfair practices in the housing market. Communities Secretary James Brokenshire has launched a consultation on plans to improve the leaseholder sector, which will bring an end…
Read MoreCourt orders sisters to pay £325,000 to dead father’s partner
Two sisters have been ordered to pay their dead father’s partner £325,000 from his estate, worth approximately £1m. The court heard that James Redmond had made a will 20 years ago leaving everything to his two daughters. However, since making the will he had formed a relationship with Carole Anne Taylor after meeting…
Read MoreStamp duty boost for first-time buyers of shared-ownership homes
Stamp duty for first-time buyers of shared-ownership homes costing up to £500,000 has been abolished by Chancellor Philip Hammond. Shared ownership is the system in which a person owns a percentage of a property, typically between 25 and 75%, and a housing association owns the rest. The scheme makes it possible to buy all…
Read More‘Giveaway budget’ but no rise in inheritance tax allowances
Chancellor Philip Hammond surprised political commentators by producing what’s been described as a “giveaway budget” featuring tax cuts and increased public spending. While many people will welcome the increase in personal tax allowance and extra funds for services like the NHS, there was also some disappointment that there was no increase in inheritance tax…
Read MoreSisters allowed to correct error to benefit from family trust
Two sisters have been allowed to correct an error in a family trust that would have prevented them from benefiting in the way intended when the document was drawn up. The sisters were aged 58 and 56. When their mother died in 2005, they had inherited equally her 50% share of the house that…
Read MoreCourt settles siblings’ dispute over sale of family home
The High Court has settled a dispute between four siblings who couldn’t agree over the sale of their parents’ house. The issue arose after the parents died having left their family home in equal shares to their four children. The parents had expressed a wish that if one the children wanted to continue living…
Read MoreLack of preparation for old age threatens our future well-being
Most people in the UK are putting their future well-being at risk by neglecting to make legal preparations for their old age, according to a new report. The research shows that Britain is experiencing a ‘dementia crisis’, with an estimated 13 million people unprepared for the possibility that they may be suffering from some…
Read More£1 billion fund created to help build thousands more homes
A new fund is being created to help speed up the delivery of thousands of new homes across England. Housing Secretary James Brokenshire says the government is entering into a partnership with Barclays Bank to provide £1 billion of loan finance to help support small and medium sized developers. Support, ranging between £5…
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