For most UK adults, the family home is the single biggest thing they own. It's also the asset people worry about most when they sit down to write a will — who gets it, what happens to a partner who lives there, and whether the taxman takes a slice before the children see anything.
The good news is that including your house in your will is usually straightforward. The complications come from how you own it, who you want to live there, and how the value sits against the inheritance tax thresholds. This guide walks through each of those in plain English.
Do you actually own your house outright?
Before anything else, check how the property is held at the Land Registry. Houses in England and Wales are owned in one of two ways:
- Sole ownership — you are the only legal owner and the whole property forms part of your estate when you die.
- Joint ownership — you own the property with one or more other people, either as joint tenants or as tenants in common.
This distinction matters more than people realise. If you and your partner are joint tenants, the house passes to the survivor automatically when one of you dies — your will doesn't override that. If you're tenants in common, each of you owns a defined share that you can leave through your will. We've written a full breakdown in our guide on tenants in common vs joint tenants and a separate piece on what happens to jointly owned property when you die.
If you're not sure how your property is held, you can check by buying a £3 title register from the HM Land Registry website. It's worth doing before you write the will.
How to leave your house in your will
There are three common ways to deal with the family home in a will, and the right one depends on your family situation.
1. Outright gift
You name a person (or several people) and the house goes to them when probate completes. Simple, clean, and how most people start. If you're leaving the home to a spouse or civil partner, this is usually the default.
"I give my property at 12 Acacia Avenue to my wife Joanne absolutely."If you have children from a previous relationship, an outright gift to a new partner means their will controls where the house goes next — which may not be where you'd want it.
2. Life interest trust (right to live there)
A life interest trust lets your partner live in the property for the rest of their life (or until they remarry, or move into care — you choose the trigger), with the property eventually passing to your children or other named beneficiaries.
This is a popular option for blended families because it protects the surviving partner and preserves the home for your children. (If you'd rather just get on with it, our guided will builder walks you through whether a life interest is right for your situation in a few minutes.)
3. Specific share to multiple people
You can leave the house to be divided — for example, "equally between my three children". The executors usually sell the property and split the proceeds, unless one child wants to buy out the others.
Inheritance tax and the family home
The two thresholds you need to know:
- Nil-rate band: £325,000. Everyone has this. Estates below this owe no inheritance tax.
- Residence nil-rate band: £175,000. An additional allowance that applies only when you leave a home (or the proceeds of a recently sold home) to a direct descendant — your children, stepchildren, adopted children, or grandchildren.
Both are frozen until April 2030 under current UK government policy. A married couple or civil partners can pass unused allowances to each other, which means a couple leaving the family home to children can shield up to £1 million of estate value before any inheritance tax bites.
A few catches worth knowing:
- The residence nil-rate band tapers if your total estate is over £2 million, losing £1 of allowance for every £2 above that line.
- It only works for direct descendants. Leaving the home to a sibling, a niece, or a friend doesn't qualify.
- A "qualifying former residence" rule lets you still claim it if you've downsized or sold up before death — but the paperwork is fiddly and worth getting right.
For a deeper look at how the bands work in 2026, see our guide to inheritance tax in the UK.
What if there's still a mortgage?
Most homes left in wills still have some mortgage attached. The basic rule under section 35 of the Administration of Estates Act 1925 is that the debt follows the property — so the person inheriting the house also inherits the mortgage, unless your will specifically directs otherwise.
A few things to think about:
- Life insurance is the usual safety net. Many homeowners have a decreasing-term policy that pays off the outstanding mortgage on death.
- If you want the estate to pay off the mortgage so the home passes free and clear, your will needs to say that explicitly: "I direct that any mortgage on my property be paid from my residuary estate."
- Joint mortgages on jointly-owned homes usually transfer with the survivorship rules — but check with the lender, as some require re-application on death.
What if you live with someone you're not married to?
This is where wills do their most important work. Cohabiting partners have no automatic right to inherit each other's home in the UK, no matter how long they've lived together. There is no such thing as a common-law spouse.
If you own the home in your sole name and you die without a will, your partner could be evicted by your blood relatives under the intestacy rules. A will is the only reliable way to protect them. Our guide for cohabiting couples goes through this in more detail.
> Thinking about how to protect your home? Trusted Hands turns these decisions into a 15-30 minute guided builder. Start free → — only pay when you download.
A note on care home fees
A common question is whether leaving the house in a particular way protects it from being sold to pay for care home fees. The honest answer is: it can help in some scenarios, but the rules are strict and HM Revenue & Customs and local authorities both look closely at deliberate deprivation of assets. For complex estates, we recommend you seek assistance from a Trusted Hands Advisor or your own legal advice.
> Ready to start your will? Trusted Hands turns these decisions into a 15-30 minute guided builder. Start free → — only pay when you download.
Frequently asked questions
Do I need to mention my house specifically in my will?
Not necessarily. If you leave your "residuary estate" to a beneficiary, the house will pass to them along with everything else not specifically gifted. But naming the property explicitly avoids ambiguity, especially if you own more than one property or want it to go to someone different from the residuary beneficiary.
Can I leave my house to my children but let my partner live there?
Yes — this is exactly what a life interest trust is for. Your partner has the right to occupy the home for as long as you specify, and the house then passes to your children. It's a common arrangement for second marriages.
What if I'm planning to move house?
A general gift like "my main residence at the date of my death" follows you to your next home automatically. A specific gift like "12 Acacia Avenue" only works if you still own that exact property when you die — if you've moved, the gift "adeems" (fails) and the new home falls into the residuary estate.
Does my house go through probate?
Usually yes, if it's in your sole name. Joint tenant property passes by survivorship and doesn't need probate. Tenants in common shares do go through probate. We've covered the typical timeline in our probate guide.
What if my house is worth more than the inheritance tax thresholds?
Anything above your combined nil-rate bands is taxed at 40%. There are legitimate ways to reduce that bill — gifts during your lifetime, trusts, charitable giving — but they need careful planning. For complex estates, we recommend you seek assistance from a Trusted Hands Advisor or your own legal advice.
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