Protective Property Trust – Right to Occupy

How can this Trust help me?

As a couple (married/civil partner or not) you can arrange your Wills to protect your assets. A large proportion of a couple’s estate is their property, you can protect your 50% share by placing it into a Protective Property Trust on your death.

Rather than leaving everything to each other, your share will be placed into Trust with your spouse/partner named as the ‘Life Tenant’ which allows them to carry on living in your share of the family home just as if you had left your share to them.

A Protective Property Trust can give flexibility:

• To sell the house and buy another (downsize to a smaller property);
• Lend money to the Life Tenant;
• To view the needs of the spouse as paramount and give the power to advance capital as well as income.
• To terminate the Trust if the Life Tenant remarries or starts living with someone else.
• To name the beneficiaries, so that only those named will benefit from your share of your home e.g. all your children (including from previous marriages/relationships).

Right to Occupy

How can this Trust help me?

It is not uncommon to have a member of your family living at your home. This can include an elderly relative or your eldest child, either way, if you die they may need your protection to allow them to remain in the property.

Setting up this Trust can give them the right to keep residing there. This can be for a specified number of years, for life or until the individual no longer requires to remain e.g. ceases to use the property as their main residence. This protection can only be given by this Trust.

A right to occupy (reside) can also help your children’s guardians, by giving them the right to live in your home while bringing up your children BUT knowing that when say, your youngest child attains the age of 18, 21 or 25 the Trust will end. When this occurs the guardians revert back to their own property allowing the family home to be passed onto your children.

Once this Trust has come to an end the named beneficiaries will then receive the house just as if it was gifted straight to them. This is usually children, family members etc. however if no-one is mentioned within the Trust the house will then return to the residuary estate leaving it as per your intentions within your Will.

Cedar Wills & Trusts, is a UK Estate Planning business, specialising in Protective Property Trusts and Right to Occupy.

Get in touch for a complimentary consultation.