Who Will Inherit Your Buy-To-Let Properties?Posted by Janice on December 19th, 2018 Do you have a Will? If you die without one, your estate may not be distributed in the way you would have intended, and it might cause real problems for your family. The issue is of particular concern to buy-to-let investors, who own flats and houses in addition to their family home. If you do not have a Will in Scotland, your estate is divided according to the rules of intestacy. FIRSTLY, IF THERE IS A SURVIVING SPOUSE THEY GET PRIOR RIGHTS.
IF THERE ARE MOVEABLE ASSETS LEFT AFTER PRIOR RIGHTS, LEGAL RIGHTS APPLYThese only apply to moveable assets – that is everything except houses, flats and land.
EVERYTHING LEFT OVER AFTER PRIOR AND LEGAL RIGHTS FALLS INTO THE FREE ESTATETherefore any other houses and land you own (including your buy-to-let properties), and all the cash etc. left from Rights will be distributed in the following strict order of succession:
It then goes on to uncles/aunts and other more distant relatives. But the important point is that your wife or husband is very low on the list. Your nieces and nephews may have better rights to your free estate than your surviving spouse. If no-one can be found then the Government gets it. If you are a buy to let investor with no Will your properties are likely to end up in your free estate. If you have children, they will inherit these properties in preference to your surviving spouse, even if they are very young at the time. This could result in an unnecessary inheritance tax bill and make the properties difficult to manage as young children do not have legal capacity. If you are married with no children, your parents, brothers and sisters, (or their children if they have died before you) will inherit your buy to let properties in preference to your husband or wife. If you have an unmarried partner, they have limited rights, which do not include the buy-to-let properties. If that is not what you want the practical solution is to draw up a Will. Like it? Share it!More by this author |