Shares left in a will

[sarahfidge]

My mum died last July and left everything to me and my two brothers. In the estate are approximately �15,000 worth of shares. My middle brother and myself don't want to sell especially as the market is down, but our older brother wants the money. Can we offer to buy him out at the current value of the sares or can we be forced to sell all the shares and split the value. We have been told that when someone leaves shares you have to sell them within a reasonable time after the death (ie a year), and can't keep them. Surely this can't be right. Any help much appreciated. Sarah

[raysparx1]

You can have them transferred into your joint names, then just pay your brother off with one third of value. thats what we did when my mum died, I never transferered the shares until four years after her death. and it wasn't a problem, although her shares were only worth about �3,000, so maybe for larger sums things are different.

[dzug]

You can do it in whatever way you can all agree to do. Just sell one third of each share holding if that is necessary and agree how you will treat the rounding.

Or transfer them 3 ways and leave the brother to sell his if that's what he wants.

[dzug]

Just to reiterate there is no compulsion to sell unless it is necessary to pay off debts/other legatees. You are entitled to have your share in shares if that's what you wish