Probate: how long?

[leftie]

How long does it get to get probate and release assets, does anyone know?

My out laws have had an offer on their house from an old dear whose hubby passed away a month ago. She can aford the house without selling the existing place, but the money is tied up in probate. I thought this would be straight forward (estate must be worth about £500,000) as they were married but the estate agent is saying it could be 6 months and to keep marketing the house. The Out Laws fear the old dear will back out if they continue to market the house (she has offered a deposit)and don't want to start looking for their next place until they have an idea of when things might move.

Google says 4-6 weeks for a simple case, 8-10 weeks for more comlex cases. I bought my house from the mother of a guy who died unexpectedly and from his untimely death to us moving in was only 15 weeks.

[sparkythecat]

I think it all depends whether or not the deceased made a will. If there's a will and only one or two beneficiaries then it'll take a lot less time than if there's no will and an army of feuding relatives.

[mattley]

well the agent doesn;t get paid untill the sale goes through, so obviously he's hoping for something quicker. If your outlaws aren't in a hurry, I'd settle for the easy sale, and wait.

[MikeyT]

sparkythecat said:

I think it all depends whether or not the deceased made a will. If there's a will and only one or two beneficiaries then it'll take a lot less time than if there's no will and an army of feuding relatives.

What he said. A will greatly helps matters, but if there is a property to sell then probate has to be granted before theat can take place, although all the paperwork can be in place while the probate is being sought.

[clapham993]

It took six and a half years to get probate on my grandfather's estate...

[leftie]

clapham993 said:

It took six and a half years to get probate on my grandfather's estate...

[clapham993]

leftie said:

clapham993 said: It took six and a half years to get probate on my grandfather's estate...

An unbelievably ghastly experience. For years my father's great fear that he would die before probate was granted leaving my mother, brothers & I to sort out both estates

[benyeats]

I think it is much more complex where the person is not married.

When that is the situation you technically have to leave it six months for any long lost relatives to come forward. Probably not normally the case unless you have some very cautious executors.

Ben

[simpo two]

My father's estate took 9 months, but that was because the solicitor was more dead than he was. They seem singularly disinterested in probate work.

[anonymous-user]

Nearly 3 years for my father estate... still not done.

[Pat H]

Six months for my Dad's.

He had a pretty good will, leaving everything to mum except for a nil rate discretionary trust.

It was pretty straightforward stuff, the solicitor was efficient and nothing was disputed.

[pdV6]

MikeyT said:

sparkythecat said: I think it all depends whether or not the deceased made a will. If there's a will and only one or two beneficiaries then it'll take a lot less time than if there's no will and an army of feuding relatives. What he said. A will greatly helps matters, but if there is a property to sell then probate has to be granted before theat can take place, although all the paperwork can be in place while the probate is being sought.

As the spouse is surviving, everything passes to her through survivorship by default unless the will says otherwise. Therefore, it ought to be pretty straightforward.

[Piglet]

Can't remember much of my probate law but you do need to establish whether there is a will or not - if there is a will that appoints executors and their power derives from that appointment. If there is no will the family will need to apply to the court for letters of Administration and they will have no power to deal with the deceased assets until this has been done.

If there isn't a will IIRC under the rules of intestacy the surviving spouse gets the first chunk up to a limit (£250k???) (not to be confused with the inheritance tax threshold) and anything above that is split out to the next line of relatives (presumably children?)but on the basis that the surviving spouse get's a life interest in the assets.

My bigger concern would be that the widow is making very big decisions very quickly. Most people in this situation would chose to stay in the marital home for a while until life settles down. Maybe she's being forced to go for financial reason? I'd just be a bit wary about relying on her as a buyer - strikes me she might be likely to change her mind.

[marki]

My Mother passed away in July , she left a will but had made a small error in it , it has just been settled in the last week .