Wills
What to do after you buy a house in the UK
Completion day is not the end of the paperwork: the will, ownership type, insurance trust and LPAs to sort after you buy.
All guides
Everything we have published, grouped by topic. All free, all covering England & Wales, all showing when they were last checked.
39 guides · England & Wales · Free to read
New guides
Inheritance tax
Should your parents give you their house?
Why signing the family home over to the children often backfires on tax, care fees and control — and what to do instead.
Protecting your assets
Why you may not want everything in your own name
Sole ownership is simple until divorce, care fees or probate. Why control and ownership are not the same thing.
Wills
Six things not to do when you make a will in the UK
Six common will mistakes that cost families the house, each with an ordinary example and the fix.
Trusts
How to put your home into a trust in England and Wales
The actual steps to put a house into a trust — ownership type, lender consent, the TR1 transfer — and the tax and care-fee traps.
Protecting your assets
Six estate planning mistakes UK families make
The six planning mistakes that show up after a death or a care bill, with worked examples and a Saturday-morning fix.
Trusts
How a trust works in the UK, without the pen trick
Settlors, trustees and beneficiaries explained with a real family — and what a trust does and does not stop.
Trusts
Is a trust better than a will?
A will and a trust do different jobs. When a homeowner needs both, and when a trust is a waste of money.
Wills
What a will does, what it costs, and how to make one that actually holds up.
- What to do after you buy a house in the UK Completion day is not the end of the paperwork: the will, ownership type, insurance trust and LPAs to sort after you buy.
- Six things not to do when you make a will in the UK Six common will mistakes that cost families the house, each with an ordinary example and the fix.
- Wills: the complete plain-English guide — the complete guide What a will does, what it costs, and how to make one that actually holds up.
- How much does a will cost in the UK? What a will really costs — by route, with the hidden extras and when cheap is a false economy.
- What happens if you die without a will? The intestacy rules in England & Wales — who inherits, in what order, and who gets nothing.
- How to get a will written for free Free Wills Month, Will Aid and the other genuine free routes — plus what each one expects in return.
- How to write a will: a step-by-step guide What to include, how to sign and witness correctly, and the mistakes that make wills fail.
- Mirror wills: what they are and when they go wrong The standard couple’s will — and the one weakness every couple should understand before signing.
- DIY will or solicitor: which do you need? An honest comparison — including the situations where a cheap will is a false economy.
- How to update or change a will Codicil or new will, when to review, and the one thing that invalidates changes.
- Making a will online: how it works How online will services work, what to check before buying, and when to use something else.
Trusts
What a trust is, when it genuinely helps, and when it is an expensive mistake.
- How to put your home into a trust in England and Wales The actual steps to put a house into a trust — ownership type, lender consent, the TR1 transfer — and the tax and care-fee traps.
- How a trust works in the UK, without the pen trick Settlors, trustees and beneficiaries explained with a real family — and what a trust does and does not stop.
- Is a trust better than a will? A will and a trust do different jobs. When a homeowner needs both, and when a trust is a waste of money.
- Trusts explained, without the jargon — the complete guide What a trust is, when it genuinely helps, and when it is an expensive mistake.
- Property protection trusts explained The trust that ring-fences half the home from a survivor’s care means test — and how to set it up correctly.
- Can you protect your home from care fees? What genuinely protects a home from care fees, and what gets reversed by the council.
- What is a trust? The simplest possible explanation of what a trust is and who does what.
- Types of trust explained The main UK trust types, what each is for, and which suits which situation.
- Trusts vs wills: which do you need? A straight comparison — and the honest answer that most people need a will, not a trust.
- Discretionary trusts explained The most flexible trust, its tax cost, and when the flexibility is worth it.
Power of attorney
Who decides for you if you cannot decide for yourself — and why a will alone is not enough.
- Lasting power of attorney: the complete guide — the complete guide Who decides for you if you cannot decide for yourself — and why a will alone is not enough.
- How much does a lasting power of attorney cost? The registration fee, exemptions, solicitor prices, and the cost of not having one.
- Health and welfare LPA Medical and care decisions, and the life-sustaining treatment choice you have to make.
- How to set up a lasting power of attorney The steps, the signing order, and the mistakes that get LPAs rejected.
- Property and financial affairs LPA What it covers, when it can be used, and the limits on what attorneys may do.
Inheritance tax
How the allowances work, what is actually taxed, and the legitimate ways to reduce the bill.
- Should your parents give you their house? Why signing the family home over to the children often backfires on tax, care fees and control — and what to do instead.
- Inheritance tax explained in plain English — the complete guide How the allowances work, what is actually taxed, and the legitimate ways to reduce the bill.
- How to reduce inheritance tax legally Ten legitimate ways to cut the bill, in order of who they suit.
- The nil-rate band explained The £325,000 allowance everyone gets, and how couples make it £650,000.
- The residence nil-rate band explained The extra home allowance, who qualifies, and the taper that removes it.
Probate
What probate is, when you need it, and what an executor actually has to do.
- Probate and dealing with an estate — the complete guide What probate is, when you need it, and what an executor actually has to do.
- How long does probate take? A realistic stage-by-stage timeline, and what causes the delays.
- What is probate and do you need it? What the grant is, when you need one, and how to apply.
Protecting your assets
Care fees, inheritance tax and the legitimate ways to keep more in the family.
- Why you may not want everything in your own name Sole ownership is simple until divorce, care fees or probate. Why control and ownership are not the same thing.
- Six estate planning mistakes UK families make The six planning mistakes that show up after a death or a care bill, with worked examples and a Saturday-morning fix.
- How to keep the lot in six steps The whole estate-planning journey in six ordered steps — will, trust, tax, LPA, executors, advice.
- Protecting your home and savings — the complete guide Care fees, inheritance tax and the legitimate ways to keep more in the family.
- Care fees explained: who pays what The means test, the thresholds, and what the council can and cannot count.
Where to start#
If you are not sure what applies to you, two pages do most of the work:
- How to keep the lot in six steps — the whole journey, in order.
- The trust savings calculator — your allowances and exposure, on your own figures.
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This is general information, not legal advice. Everyone's situation is different — speak to a qualified adviser before acting. KeepTheLot is an independent information service covering England & Wales. We are not a law firm.