Inheritance money

Pay off any other smaller debts, put a chunk in savings for the baby and keep a portion so that you don’t have to work much if you don’t want & be with your baby more ❤️

We don't have any other debts, paying it off will leave me with 7k out of the inheritance money

Mortgage companies often charge for paying off mortgages too so there’s always that to consider. I also would get your name on the house before paying any of it off, because if the worst happens although you’ll be entitled to something you’ve in essence paid off your husband’s mortgage…

As Yasmin said, you’re not on the deeds, don’t pay off the house until you are. I know you’re married and it probably feels moot, it still leaves you in a vulnerable position.

@Yasmin my husband said its a 3k fee to pay it off outright x

Yeah, I just feel it's a bit much to use everything i have, I don't see why it's worse to wait 3yrs and do it when the fix rate expires if we can pay it off still, everything is going up and It would be nice to feel like we aren't having to struggle with the pressures of that

Put it in savings until your fixed term is up. You'll gain interest and be able to pay off your mortgage without any fees.

Have a chat with your mortgage advisor or a financial advisor, as they'll be able to advise the best way to use the funds that'll give you the most benefit 😊 Although I would say if you're not on the deeds, I'd make sure you're put on if you're willing to pay the mortgage off!

Assuming your current fixed rate is good? 2-3% ? I’d get your name on the deeds, overpay the max each year without incurring charges, until your out the fixed rate bit. Put it in a ISA and a savings account with the best interest you can find for the next 3 years then pay it off. But if the interest rate is high > 4% just pay it off and then put the mortgage money you would usual pay into a savings account each month to recoup some savings. I wouldn’t just live of your savings. It just gets you used to living beyond your means and then what when they’re gone.

I was just going to suggest the same as Katie to the point that I would just be typing it out again.

@Katie yeah, that's pretty much what I was thinking as the fixed rate is good

Yes I also agree with Katie. Overpay as much as possible until your fixed rate is up. And stick the rest wherever will earn you good interest!

If you are not on the deed of the house don’t pay it off until you are which you most likely would need a solicitor to help with too the house should really be 50/50 in my opinion for your safety but also your partners! plus until your 3 year is over you’ll have to pay off the early repayment fee if it’s over a certain amount for instance we just got a new mortgage if we were to pay it off today we would have to pay £15,000 penalty

Hey, what's your interest rate? We have also inherited some money recently and have sought advice from a financial advisor and that's said definitely to at least wait until the foxes rate comes to an end as it's good (2.5%) Have you thought about putting some in premium bonds, you can have 50k per person and there isn't interest but you get entered in a prize draw every month, we got £950 last month! And almost every month have won something in the range of £25-1100

You can also put 50k each in your child's name

Also consider putting some in a junior ISA / junior stocks and shares ISA. The child won't pay tax on it.

Don't pay off the mortgage until you are on the deeds and get something in writing like a trust deed to say if you sell the house you get your chunk of money back or it goes into another property - please protect yourself! Also, putting savings aside for the kids and a nest egg for you is a good idea too

Should I still pay it off if it leaves me with only 7k?

Pay a financial advisor to tell you what is best. They should make you back more than the money they cost.

Pay off the maximum you can each year without incurring a charge whilst you are still in the fixed rate and then pay it off at the end instead of renewing to avoid having to pay fees! 😊 In the meantime pay off any other little debts, enjoy yourself a little and put the rest in a good savings account(s).

I think the fact that you’re having doubts paying off the mortgage says it all…I’d do what most are suggesting, pay off as much as you can each month without penalty, get yourself onto the deeds too, put some into savings/bonds and then enjoy yourself with some of it too.

I wouldn't pay it off at all just with your money. I think if your current repayment structure is that both of you repay a portion of the mortgage, then your partner should repay their portion of the remaining mortgage too. Because if you are eventually put on the deeds, which there is no guarantee of right now, you'll both get 50% but you paying off the mortgage with your inheritance money means you've paid more overall. Its good to keep some kind of mortgage anyway as the bank or lender always has some kind of liability.

Is it not wise to pay her half of the mortgage even if she is not on the deed? I am asking to know more for myself as well?

@Jay she could do that but in doing so, her partner will get an interest rebate and will still pay less overall. Which she might be willing to do but i would definitely be asking to be put on the deed before anything is paid. Me and my husband both are purchasing separate homes (stamp duty purposes and personal investments) and then buying one together.

@Jay no if anything happens divorce even any unforeseen illness that lead to death she may not get any right to the house at all as she is not on the paperwork for the house normally in death it goes to the wife or child but if they divorce and maybe becomes an arse ( could happen hopefully not) he can leave her with nothing !

@Julia that's what i worry about as money is a terrible thing sometimes

Get a financial order any money you put in from inheritance should be paid back to you IF he ever sells the house especially if you're not on the deeds. I wouldn't financially contribute a lump sum without me being legally tied to the property

Definitely don't pay anything off a house that you have no claim to! I know you're married, but that's not enough for me in this scenario. I'm not sure I'd pay it off though, as I like the idea of enjoying the money! Although, it saves you all of the interest

It’s a simple calculation. If you save the money, ISA’s, bonds, investments. If what you can make is more than the interest on your mortgage, you should do that. Don’t forget you pay tax on an any profit from investments beyond the 20k ISA.

If it's over 100k it's 100% worth investing. I wouldn't do individual stocks and shares though. My daughter has a stocks and shares ISA for example and she has made more money in 3 months within that then I have for the last 3 years with way, way more money in my savings.

Wait the 3 years once it’s up, prior to renewing it they will accept a lumps sum payment which can then bring your amount owed down significantly then recalculate your monthly payments based on the new amount owed and hopefully the interest rate will be decent too. I’m 34 and this is also my plan as I want to be mortgage free in the next 10 years. Personally i think it is your money and decision is yours but looking at how much interest you will loose over the next few years That amount could be the lump sum payment, I would pay a lump sum equivalent to half of what is owed and used the rest to be comfortable especially with work/ earnings after Mat leave.

We don’t have any debt except mortgage but mortgage is still debt too so if that was my situation, I’d pay that off. Provided that after paying it off you’ll still have a good lump sum left out of inheritance (like 30-40k).

Pay off the max you can a year, or pay it all off and then whatever you guys pay toward your mortgage at the minute you can pay into joint savings each month instead.

I’d pay it off and enjoy your life . Just ensure your on the deeds

Am I wrong in thinking that because we are married if anything did happen would I not get 1/2 the house anyway? I thought that would be the case as we are married and have a child 🤔

I thought so too so I’m learning a lot from this post. Turns out not automatically

Yes you would be. The automatic starting point is half of everything if you’re married, you would have no more or less right to it because you aren’t on the deeds. The same goes for your inheritance. If you divorced now you might be able to argue to keep most of it but given you aren’t it would become a martial asset too. So I personally wouldn’t stress about that, it only matters if you aren’t married and are living together. I would get some financial advice but think a compromise of overpaying the mortgage and keeping the rest in savings makes sense as you will be reducing your long term cost of your mortgage but also ensuring you’ve got enough savings to live comfortably no matter what happens. I would have done things differently if I’d known the cost of living crisis was about to hit as it ended up meaning we have limited savings despite having a lot of money in our home.