Transferring Ownership of your Property

• Posted onApril 27, 2020

Government guidelines around social distancing have meant that there are more restrictions when it comes to moving house. Sue Taylor looks at the reasons to transfer the ownership of your property in order to protect your assets in the current climate.

There are many reasons for transferring ownership of a property. Here is a list of areas where a solicitor can help you with this.

Divorce or Separation

Property can be prominent in divorce or separation agreements due to the fact it is likely the biggest asset a couple will own. The ownership of the property may need to be transferred in order to comply with any agreement reached between the parties, when separating or divorcing. For more information of the process of separation, dissolution or divorce please visit our family law pages here.

Estate Planning

As they get older, parents may want to transfer any property they own to their children, for estate planning purposes.  You will not be able to avoid paying nursing home fees by transferring the property. For further information and advice on this please contact our Private Client department.  The transfer may have Capital Gains Tax implications. If the beneficiary divorces or becomes bankrupt, the property forms part of their assets.

Sole to Joint Ownership or vice versa

Sole Ownership of a property is when it is legally owned by only one person. Joint Ownership is where it is legally owned by 2 or more people. To change either of these you will need the help of a solicitor.

You may wish to change this to add a new partner or spouse as an owner of the house for example. Similarly, you may wish to remove someone who leaves the property or no longer wants to be part owner of it.

Things to remember:

If there is a mortgage on the property, the lenders consent must be obtained and they will need to satisfy themselves that the remaining owner can afford to make the repayments and other outgoings.

It is a popular misconception that Stamp Duty Land Tax is not payable. This is not the case. If any money being paid for the equity which exceeds £125,000, Tax is payable. If there is a mortgage on the property which is not being repaid, half of the mortgage debt is deemed to be payment and attracts Tax.

If the property is leasehold, there are other elements which need to be dealt with in order to deal with the requirements contained in the lease in order to notify the landlord of the change of ownership. Fees would be payable to the landlord or their agent.

At WSP Solicitors we can help you with all of these scenarios in which you may need to transfer ownership of your property. You can visit our Residential Property pages to see the full range of ways we can help or advise you in any circumstances regarding your home.

To contact Sue Taylor directly you can find here details here, or fill out the form in the sidebar of this page. Alternatively, you can call us on 01453 847200.