Happy families

A client of mine became a widower 15 years ago. To reduce inheritance tax (as the rules then stood) he and his late wife were tenants in common of the family home and his wife left her half of the property to their daughter.

My client is increasingly frail and has just informed me that the house has been sold and he will be moving into a small warden-assisted flat shortly. His share of the proceeds of sale is more than enough to cover his new purchase.

The daughter will receive her share in cash but the property has increased substantially in value over the past 15 years and she will have a liability to capital gains tax.

Although she owns her own home since her father was widowed the daughter has visited frequently staying with him for many weekends and during holiday...