Louis purchased a Semi-D house two years ago for RM 650,000. Louis still owes RM 600,000 on his loan, with monthly payments of RM 3,000 at 4.1% interest per annum. Louis lives in the house with his wife and 2-year-old son; both his parents have passed away. Let’s consider this question, “What happens to Louis’s property if something happens to him?”
The Semi-D house will be frozen and become part of Louis’s estate.
It’s commonly assumed that Louis’s wife will automatically inherit the property. Unfortunately, his property will be frozen upon his death, and whether Louis’s wife inherits the property depends on whether Louis has written a will.
If Louis writes a will, he can name his wife as the sole beneficiary of the property and leave all his shares and interest in the property to her. Alternatively, he may leave the property to his son under a testamentary trust in the event they both die together.
However, if Louis dies without a will, his property won’t automatically go to his wife. Instead, it’ll be divided according to the Distribution Act of 1958, with his wife receiving 1/3 shares and his son receiving 2/3 shares of his property.
The bank will hold the property’s title until the debts are fully settled.
Debts don’t disappear with the deceased. Louis’s personal representative, whether his executor or administrator, still needs to use his estate to continue paying off the housing loan. In such circumstances, Louis’s bank would demand his executor to pay the housing loan with Louis’s estate either in installments (RM 3,000) or a lump sum (RM 600,000).
The bank will hold the title deed of the property until Louis’s housing loan has been fully paid off. If the mortgage is not settled, his creditors would have priority over Louis’s beneficiaries on Louis’s estate. During this period, it’s possible for Louis’s family members to continue paying the loans from:
- Proceeds of Louis’s Insurance Policies.
- Proceeds of Louis’s EPF account.
- Their own pockets.
If Louis’s family deliberately fails and/or refuses to pay the housing loan, the bank will apply to the court to auction off the properties unless his family members can show cause to the contrary to set aside the order.
What can Louis do to protect the property and his beneficiaries?
To be safe, Louis should:
- Write a will and name his wife as the main beneficiary with his son as the substitute beneficiary. If both die, the property shall form part under a testamentary trust for his son.
- Purchase sufficient life insurance to cover his outstanding loan amount and nominate his wife as the beneficiary. In the event of double tragedies where both Louis and wife died together, the life insurance shall form part of the testamentary trust for his son’s living expenses, medical expenses, and education expenses.
- Make sure there’s enough cash flow to pay debts and taxes, through his insurance policies or his EPF and any other forms of liquidable assets.
Planning can avoid problems later. Louis can talk to a professional estate planner to get started. By planning ahead, Louis can make sure his family is taken care of, even if something unexpected happens.
You may make an appointment with our legal advisor here:
https://calendly.com/finex-and-co-legacy-advisory/tea-talk-with-legal-expert
在你离世后，你的房产该怎么办?
Louis两年前以65万令吉购买了一栋半独立式房屋。Louis仍然欠着60万令吉的贷款，每月还款3000令吉，利率为4.1%。他与妻子和两岁的儿子一起住在这栋房子里; 他的父母已经去世了。试想想以下情况， “如果Louis发生了什么事，他的房产会怎样？”
半独立式房屋将被冻结，并成为Louis的财产的一部分。
人们普遍认为，Louis的妻子将自动继承房产。不幸的是，他的财产在他去世后将被冻结，Louis的妻子是否继承房产取决于Louis是否有遗嘱。
如果Louis写了遗嘱，他可以将房产的所有份额和利益都留给妻子，并将她命名为房产的唯一受益人。或者，如果他们两个人同时去世，他可以在遗嘱中将房产留给儿子，作为一个遗嘱信托。
然而，如果Louis没有遗嘱，他的财产不会自动归妻子所有。相反，根据1958年的分配法令，他的财产将按比例分配，他的妻子将获得1/3的份额，他的儿子将获得2/3的份额。
银行将持着房产地契，直到贷款全部偿清。
债务不会随着债务人的去世而消失。Louis的个人代表，无论是他的执行人还是遗产管理人，仍然需要利用他的财产继续偿还贷款。在这种情况下，银行可以要求他的执行人使用Louis的遗产分期（每月3000令吉）或一次性支付（60万令吉）房子贷款。
如果贷款没有偿还，他的债权人在Louis的遗产上会优先于Louis的受益人。在此期间，Louis的家人可以继续用以下的方式支付贷款：
- Louis保险单里的保险金。
- Louis的公积金。
- Louis 家人需要自己付款。
如果Louis的家人故意或拒绝支付房款，银行将向法院申请拍卖房产，除非他们的家人能够证明来撤销庭令。
那么Louis可以采取什么措施来保护房产和受益人？
为了安全起见，Louis应该：
- 写遗嘱，并将妻子命名为主要受益人，将儿子作为替代受益人。如果两人都去世了，房产将作为遗嘱信托的一部分留给他的儿子。
- 购买足够的人寿保险，以支付他的未偿还的贷款，并将妻子指定为受益人。如果夫妻二人同时去世的情况下，人寿保险将成为Louis遗嘱信托的一部分用于儿子的生活费、医疗费和教育费。
- 确保有足够的现金流来支付债务，可以通过他的保险金或者他的公积金以及其他形式的流动资产来解决债务。
提前规划可以避免以后出现的问题。Louis可以与专业的资产规划师交谈，并开始规划。通过提前规划，Louis可以确保他的家人得到照顾，即使他不幸发生意外。
