Some great, simple, guidance from Andrea about why considering a Protective Property Trust in your Will makes so much sense to so many different types of families.
Many clients say when making an appointment ‘we just need a simple Will’. Where a simple “Mirror Will” is appropriate, that is exactly what we will help you with. There are, however, circumstances when a simple Will is not the best course of action, particularly for blended families, or second-time round relationships. Let me explain…
Most peoples’ main asset is their home. If you have a simple Will, that leaves everything to each other, then down to your children. Or they own their home as “Joint Tenants”, meaning the house automatically passes to the other owner on death, regardless of what your will says.
What are the risks of leaving to each other?
This can have unwanted consequences for many families. Especially for “blended families” where you have children from your previous relationships. If you leave your home to your partner / spouse ….
- They are then free to do with it exactly as they choose. This could mean they gift everything to their own family or children – and leave out yours!
- They could remarry, automatically revoking their Will. That would then mean their estate (or the bulk of it) would go sideways to their new spouse – and importantly not to the children.
- They could need care, meaning all your own and their assets could be used to pay fees.
- They could fritter it away, or get into financial difficulties, your children or family could be left with very little.
And if you don’t leave it to them, instead leaving to your children, then your partner could be at risk of being evicted!
How do we protect against the risk?
We have heard many stories of people who didn’t get a penny when their step-parent changed their will, like in this example. Or children whose inheritance went “sideways” after their parent remarried. Or someone who has died without a Will and their partner no longer has anywhere to live.
It’s so common I’d guess that you know someone who’s been through this?!
Please don’t let this happen to your loved ones!
Include a Protective Property Trust – or “PPT” in your Will. A PPT is a form of “Life interest Trust”. You can use this type of trust for your property or for other assets too. For many people, their home is their largest asset and for that reason, most just want to protect that.
When we hear the word ‘trust’ this can sometimes sound complicated. It’s best to consider it as just a clause in your Will.
Including a Protective Property Trust in your Will allows you to leave your own share completely protected for your own family or children. The clause doesn’t come into effect until you die, but after you do …
- Your share is held for your chosen beneficiaries, but your spouse/partner has the right to live there for a defined period. That is normally until death, but can be earlier e.g., a number of years or until certain events like remarriage.
- You can choose whether to include options to move, upsize, downsize, or sell up altogether.
- You can also choose what happens to any surplus if they decide to move to a cheaper property.
- You also have options about ‘access to capital’ – this means allowing each other to ‘dip into’ the Trust, should the need arise.
- When the trust ends, your chosen beneficiaries (your own family or children) get your share of the home. There is no risk of it being lost through any of the vents outlined above.
You can also use this type of trust if only one of you owns the home you live in. You can include a similar “Right to Reside” trust for your partner, allowing them some protection for a period of time. Once that’s up, your home then belongs to those you’ve decided.
The Protective Property Trust is completely customisable to your wishes.
You may be concerned that a Trust would restrict life decisions. This isn’t true. The Trust only starts when one of you pass away and relates to whichever home you live in at the time. You may move several times before your Will is needed! If you were no longer homeowners when one of you passed away, the Trust would not even begin.
How can we help?
We will explain everything at your appointment. We also check the Land Registry ownership and prepare the paperwork to change the ownership from “Joint Tenants” (where the home automatically goes to other owner) to “Tenants in Common” – which in effect splits the property in 2. This allows each of you to leave your own share as you wish in a trust.
We will guide you through the Will process in the simplest of terms, to get your affairs in order.
Many people do not realise a Property Trust is an option. We often say ‘talk, don’t tap’ – this kind of information could be completely lost if you did an online Will, or picked up one from the Post Office.
It’s fair to say that not many people relish the thought of discussing their Will – but almost without exception our clients tell us we have made the process much easier than they had imagined it would be.
Call us on 01524 571032 for an initial chat, or to make an appointment. Or ask for our Property Trust Wills leaflet via our website.