Angela Brown
Daniels LLP Solicitors I LEFT my husband last year and came to live with my daughter. Can I force my husband to sell our house, which is in joint names, without going to the expense of a divorce? He says he will get it repossessed before giving me my share. You can force your husband to sell the house. However the actual divorce isn’t usually the expensive part of a couple splitting up; the expense can arise where the parties can’t agree on dividing assets. It is possible to sort out your affairs without divorcing, but from a financial point of view you’d probably be as well sorting out both at the same time, and soon if your husband isn’t paying bills for which you could find yourself jointly liable. See a solicitor immediately to protect your own position, and notify your mortgage lender of the situation. MY mother has made a will leaving half of her estate to my children, who are under 18 and not taxpayers. A friend has told me that if my children are left a large sum, say £30,000, then I will have to pay tax on their behalf. Unless they already have substantial investments, the income your children would receive from such a sum would be unlikely to take them over their personal allowance threshold, in which case they will be able to reclaim any tax deducted at source. If on the other hand you were to receive the money instead of the children, the income it generated would simply add to your tax liability, assuming you are a taxpayer yourself. If the MORE than 18 months ago a lodger disappeared owing me over £4,000. He left behind furniture and some big boxes, although I made no agreement to keep them for him. Can I sell his goods, or give them away? You are under a duty to try to return the goods to the lodger, so you may need evidence that you have attempted to locate him. The chances of any repercussions are probably very slim, but I recommend you serve an Abandonment Notice to help protect your position OUR neighbour has chopped down part of our lilac tree. He’s not only sawn off the branches that were