Deed of Gift on mother's property

by **jesc100** on Sat Oct 01, 2011 6:19 pm

Hi, thanks for providing this site. As a new user, I may well be posting in the wrong forum, using incorrect terminology, or providing inadequate information. If any of these is the case, please feel free to let me know.
My mother is in her eighties, frail, but currently in good health. She has a property valued at ~£100K in her sole name after my father died ~30 years ago, on which there is no mortgage.

My only brother and I had previously ruled out looking into transfering the property into our names (in order to avoid the house being sold to provide for long term care) because we were told that this would be seen as 'deprivation of estate'?

Recently someone has suggested it would be a good idea to transfer our father's half share of the house to my brother and I via a 'deed of gift', thereby protecting 50% of its value.

Does this make sense? What other factors should we be taking into consideration?
Thanks in advance for your advice.

by **maths** on Sat Oct 01, 2011 10:51 pm

Your father's share no longer exists; it was left to your mother.

It's not therefore possible to simply gift the 50%.

by **jesc100** on Tue Oct 04, 2011 8:40 pm

Hi maths, thanks for your reply.
What would prevent my mother from gifting half of the value of her property to us, should she wish to do so and could this be done in the form of a deed of gift?

Regards

by **maths** on Tue Oct 04, 2011 9:01 pm

Nothing to stop her gifting whatever % of the property she wishes.

However, if she gave you say 50% then on any future sale there would be a CGT charge on your 50% sale but not hers (as she lives in it).

If she simply left you 100% on her death by will no CGT would be payable on a sale (assuming sale soon after her death).

Gifting 50% now may be seen as capital deprivation and thus may not be successful.