Selling a property through Probate, or Lasting Power Of Attorney

Top Facts about Probate Sales;

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Technically you cannot sell a property before the probate is granted, unless your name is already on the deed. The Probate takes around eight weeks to come back and if you sell your house in the meantime this could hold up completion, your buyers and their solicitors should be informed this is the case.

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There should be no extra costs for selling a Probate property.

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When selling the property through Probate, the sellers only have a limited title guarantee. This needs to be understood by the buyer’s solicitors, and the buyer should be made aware.

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There is no legal obligation for the seller to renovate the property, this could increase the cost however the property is usual being sold as seen, therefor there is no legal obligation for renovation.

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Top facts about Lasting Power of Attorney sales;

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As there are two types of Powers of Attorney, property and Financial Affairs Lasting Power of Attorney and a Health and Welfare Lasting Power of Attorney, to sell a property through Lasting Power of Attorney you must be appointed in the Property and Financial Lasting Power of Attorney.

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The Lasting Power of Attorney for Property and Financial Affairs only has to be registered with the Office of the Public Guardian to be valid before the property can be sold this way, even if the Donor still has mental capacity for the Lasting Power of Attorney to be valid it still needs to be registered, if the owner has previously made an Enduring Power of Attorney this must be registered at the Office of the Public Guardian before the sale can proceed. This could take around six to eight weeks.

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When the property is being sold via Lasting Power of Attorney as long as the Donor has mental capacity, the property is being sold with full title guarantee.