Joint Account help/advice

A question about : Joint Account help/advice

Hi there,

I'm having a real problem finding a bank account so I wondered if you lovely people could give me some advice.

My father passed away in October and so I have inherited a house with my brother and sister; the house is currently let out and mortgage free so receives regular rental income. We need an account to store the income and divide it as necessary (obviously leaving some for emergency repairs etc). We all want access to the account and so realistically want a joint account, BUT we don't live at the same address and can't easily get to the same branch since we live in London, Lincoln and Bristol.

HSBC outright said that we couldn't do it and had to open a business acount and I ended up with a 17 page document relating to international tax laws and was completely and utterly lost. Lloyds implied it could be done easily online and it was only once I'd opened the account that the informed that actually you have to live at the same address to have a joint account.

I feel like I've spent hours going into branches and calling branches and no one can help me.

By the way, I appreciate that we should just make the effort to meet up, but between my being full time employed, my sister having two young children and my brother being a third year student, it's proving to be really difficult to all be in the same place at the same time, at least not until the summer holidays and we need the account sooner rather than later because otherwise we're paying a solicitor to hold the money for us!

Thank you in advance for your help,

Cat

Best answers:

• Are your credit histories equally good or bad, so that you aren't concerned about linking them all together?
  I don't see what real advantages you can achieve by having a joint account as compared to a sole one on someone's name.
• The problem with having it in one name is that even discussing it led to blazing rows. It would be lovely to assume that we are a loving, trusting family, but we just aren't and that leads to mistrust and arguments.
• A joint account requires trust as well. How can you manage it without trust?
  It's just one monthly rent amount FFS. The 'repairs fund' can be split to sole accounts and kept in three portions to prevent misuse.
• Thank you for your responses, I was hoping for some constructive input, but I appreciate you taking the time to comment.
• Hi TeacherCat,
  Lloyds website seems to say to visit branch if the joint account holders do not live at the same address as you.
  I would err on the side of caution though as Grumbler rightly points out this will create a financial link between you all, meaning if you or any of the other parties have a bad credit history or get into difficulties with credit, it will be contagious, possibly limiting the other peoples access to credit too.
  Also there is nothing to stop one of the account holders putting an overdraft on the account and using it to the max then leaving the other parties liable for the debt. Joint accounts come with joint responsibilities.
  I'm sorry if this is not the advise you were looking for but did not want to just read 'n' run without pointing this out. I would hate for you to be stung by family that already has trust issues over the rental payments.
  I hope you can all work it out somehow.
  DB
• Thanks - we're going to sell in about a year or so, but we didn't want to sell straight away simply because we have nice tenants and I don't want to kick them out yet, but also because my brother wouldn't be able to do anything until he's 25 anyway, so we figured we might as well wait.
  I think the issue is not that anyone would actually do anything if they had sole responsibility, it's that they *could* and then that preys on the mind of the other two of us - I know it's all very silly and petty, but it's just easier in terms of saving arguments if everyone has an equal footing (the biggest issue is, if it was as sole account, whose name should it be in - I'd say mine because I have probate, but my sister says hers because she's the eldest etc etc)! By having a joint account everything is very clear and all three of us know exactly what the other is doing so then there is no room for doubt.
  Having said that, I hadn't actually realised that having a joint account affects credit rating and with one sibling a stay at home mum with minor debts and the other being a student, you're right in pointing out that I might not want to be financially tied to them.
  At this point I want to just throw up my hands and do whatever is easiest, but there doesn't seem to be an easy answer. Natwest are proving to be optimistic with regards to joint account, but now I'm wondering if that *is* the best option - I have an excellent credit rating and I don't really want it damaged by association, especially as I'm considering getting a mortgage in the next couple of years, so then do I let the responsibility fall to my brother and sister to manage the account and hope they don't mess it up too much?
• I think your only alternative would be to use a letting agent who would deal with the rent payments and any outgoings.