When someone has passed away, the will they’ve usually made will dictate what happens to their property, their possessions, and their financial assets. In most instances, the family of a deceased person are all in regular contact and live in the same area, so the instructions on the will are often easily carried out and sorted. However, there will be instances where there either is no will or the family are scattered on a global scale and do not communicate regularly.
So what is a derelict property?
To begin with, it is important to understand what a derelict property is. While there is no official explanation given, the basic premise is that a derelict property is one that has been abandoned, and has usually fallen into disarray. There are many different indicators to suggest a property has become derelict, but these can include things like wild animals going into and coming out of the property, as well as broken doors and other parts of the structure being unstable.
So how do I sort out a derelict property?
In the event that a person dies without having a will or any known family, the property and all its possessions are given to the Crown, and becomes ownerless property, which is sometimes called ‘bona vacantia'. In order to claim the estate, you’d need to prove you were an entitled relative, and then just put in a claim for the estate. The problem that you’ll face is if the family is scattered and estranged, which means that no one is in contact with anyone, so finding other relatives who can potentially dispute your claim can sometimes be difficult. Most people will at this point hire an heir hunter, who will then help you by tracking down all the descendants and relatives of the deceased, in order to locate any potential heirs who can claim the property. You can only claim the property if you’re descended from a grandparent of the deceased and if no spouse or child has made a claim to it previously, but the heir hunters will help you to identify this and to ensure that you can make a legitimate claim.
Overall, the scenario where a person has died and owns a property, which then can not be given to anyone because of an estranged family and the absence of a will can be problematic, and sometimes difficult. While personal research and investigation can get you so far, hiring a professional team of heir hunters can often be the best way to establish how good of a claim you would have. Once you’ve established that, making a claim is a relatively straight forward process and will enable you to collect your claim to the estates of a deceased relative, so the property and assets do not become the property of the Crown, which happens if they’re held for more than 30 years.
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