Can I bequeath my property to only one of my children?
2 min read . Updated: 26 Apr 2023, 12:43 AM IST
PremiumA person can bequeath their assets to any person of their choice without needing NOC from their children. However, the applicable personal law should be kept in mind, and a lawyer should be consulted. A bungalow's 50% ownership can be transferred to a spouse through a registered gift deed or a will.
I am a 65-year-old woman and have two sons. Can I draft a will bequeathing all my assets to my elder son who takes care of me? Do I need a no-objection certificate (NOC) from my younger son?
—Name withheld on request
You are entitled to bequeath all your property to any person of your choice, be it any of your children or a third party. Further, no NOC is required to be obtained from any of your children for executing your will in the manner you deem fit and proper. However, please note that the manner in which your property can be bequeathed also depends on the personal law that is applicable to you at the time of your death. Hence, we advice that you contact a lawyer who can assist you in executing a will keeping in mind the appropriate law that is applicable to you.
I own a bungalow in Mumbai. Now, I want my wife to be the co-owner of the bungalow. Is it possible to do so without any kind of consideration or do I have to draft a will and bequeath the bungalow to her?
—Name withheld on request
There are two ways to transfer 50% of the ownership of your bungalow in favour of your wife without passing any kind of consideration.
If you want to do this during your life time, you can execute and register a gift deed in your wife’s name such that 50% of the rights in the bungalow are transferred in your wife’s name. At the time of execution and registration of the gift deed, you will be required to pay the applicable stamp duty, metro cess and the registration fees on the gift deed.
In the event that you want to transfer the rights of the bungalow on your demise, you can execute a will specifying that 50% rights for the bungalow should be transferred to your wife upon your demise. However, in this case, we would advice that you also mention the manner in which the balance 50% entitlement in the bungalow will be dealt with.
Sagar Kadam and Mitali Naik are partners at DSK Legal.