Sale of House which has been left to descendants in Will

[bruncher]

This question concerns a house that is Willed (by mother) to myself and my brother. She is in a nursing home, terminally ill but is compos mentis. Myself and brother have Enduring Power of Attorney, and will handle the sale.

The question is: would inheritance of the proceeds of the house sale be liable to the same IHT as inheritance of the house itself?

I have looked at HMRC's website and it appears that the proceeds of a sale would have the same protection as a house: this seems to be the relevant para:
"The actual home doesn’t have to end up in the hands of the direct descendants. An estate could still be eligible for the additional threshold if the estate’s personal representative sells the home as part of the administration of the estate and passes the sale proceeds to the direct descendants."

Does anyone have experience of this?

[Clitheroekid]

The guidance quoted relates to the situation where the house is sold after death. However, it appears that you may be contemplating a sale of the house while your mother is still alive.

There are slightly complicated rules relating to “downsizing” which say that, provided certain conditions apply, the sale proceeds from a house sold before the death of its owner can still qualify for the RNRB.

There’s a helpful guide here - https://www.taxinsider.co.uk/1495-Downs ... _Work.html

[bruncher]

Thanks Clitheroekid, this is very useful.

(BTW I actually used to listen to The Clitheroe Kid)