where do i stand,with a will and a house?

[teabaglilxx]

hi people,ok shall make it short,i married last year,who owed his house ouright,as he bought it with his wife who,has now passed,however i gave up my private home up after 10 years,with my son who is 10.unknown to me my husband has made a will,leaving 40/40 to his two sons and 20 grand to me,as my husbands house has to be sold no matter what,i have no problem with this my only concern is if he passes away i will be left homeless,and he has made a will and both of his sons have signed his will that at present they inherit 40/40 of the house,and my husbands older son is in charge of the will,i have read the will and it states, im so confused where do i stand as a wife,so all i can make out is,i will be left 20 grand and some contents,this is making me feel alone im so insucure,please anybody,im so depressed ive gave everything up and also lost my daughter,i sold everything i owed for 30 years to have a life with my husband,i feel cheated as he says i could be worst off,i would rather have a new life on my own and feel like a goldigger,im his wife and he says i have no say about his will and want he wants :(((

[teabaglilxx]

forgot to mention my husband is not the father to my son.

[cathfromsaron]

what did you do with the money from your home when you sold up?

if it is still in your name, then can you buy a house with that if the need arises?

is your marriage otherwise happy?

[woofgang]

You are right, you have no say at all about his will, neither does he about yours. You say the sons have signed the will, does this mean that they are witnesses? If so then the will is invalid because witnesses cannot inherit.

[Baldric]

Brilliant first post tbl,
welcome to AB!
You'll go far'
THis a familiar situation to ABers, I'm sure you'll get lot of opinions offered.

[Barmaid]

Did hubby make the will before or after you married?
What do you mean the sons signed the Will?
As a spouse you have the right to make a claim under the Inheritance (Provision for Family and Dependants) Act 1975 after the death of your husband for reasonable financial provision.

Otherwise, you have no say in your husband's testamentary dispositions.

[Flyhalf]

Sounds like he wants you to go.
Well, then, go - and take him to the cleaners, and let his sons see what little will be left for them to inherit!

[cathfromsaron]

did a lawyer make this will, or was it from a newsagent?

beneficiaries cannot witness wills, but can be executors!

[sandyRoe]

If the sons signed the will as witnesses they've made a costly mistake. You can't be both a witness and a beneficiary of a will.
Incidentally, are there any owls nesting near this house?

[dennisb66]

both of his sons have signed his will !!!
Why have his sons signed the will.Wills must be witnessed by non members of the family.
I'm no expert but as you have been married for 10 years i don't think that you can be left homeless.

[woofgang]

wills can be witnessed by family members but those family members cannot then benefit form the estate.

[cathfromsaron]

*if* the will is valid ... then you can appeal against homelessness anyway!

but it does look like a shambles! in which case he is potentially intestate and you would inherit as his wife, (although intestacy the rules are long, complicated and expensive)!

[Barmaid]

Just to add some clarification. s15 Wills Act 1837 provides that if a Will is witnessed by a beneficiary, the beneficiary's spouse or the beneficiary's civil partner the devises to that beneficiary will fail.

[teabaglilxx]

i lived in a private house rented,the two sons signed for there 40/40 percent,with no witneses only i saw yes this was done before i got married so regardless weather i married my husband he was going to leave me 20 grand,our marriage is not really all a happy one constant reminder from my husband if passes away he wants me out of the house,because he feels i have a right to stay here due to my son being under the age of 18,i do know how his sons feel about me they are scared im a goldigger,i just hate this feeling,i really do have to think about mine and my son furture,ive put so much into this marriage,and feel used as my husband cannot do alot.

[woofgang]

"I live in a private house rented"???????? no witnesses to the will???????????

[rowanwitch]

The big question is would you do better with a divorce settlement or inheritance...

See a solicitor.... And put yourself and your son first

[bednobs]

if he died now, well you will be 20k better off than you were last year, and you could just rent another place couldn't you?
20k not bad for a year's work

[Celticv11]

Relax, there is no valid will.

[teabaglilxx]

he does not want me to leave,far from it he dont like me going out at all all i feel is a prisoner,but i just thought maybe because he has been ill he didnt want to be alone,he tells everyday he loves me i feel so stupid.

[cathfromsaron]

if the will was written before you married, it is invalid anyway!

you need new wills (to be legally signed and dated by independent witnesses) upon marriage, and they tell you this at the register office!

[Barmaid]

It cannot be a valid Will for two reasons:-

1 there were no witnesses
2 it was before you married. Marriage revokes a Will unless it is expressed to be "in contemplation of marriage".

It sounds to me like you are confused somewhere. Is it a declaration of trust rather than a Will?