Which evidence will the buyer's lawyer require to show the surviving owner's authority to sell a freehold property where the deceased owner is still shown on the register?

• A. A copy of the deceased's death certificate
• B. A grant of probate
• C. A copy of the surviving owner's passport
• D. The mortgage redemption statement

Answer: (B)

When someone dies and their interest in a property becomes part of their estate, someone must be empowered to deal with that estate before the property can be sold. The document that does this is a grant of probate, which appoints the executors named in the will to administer the estate and to convey the deceased’s interest in the property on behalf of the estate. If the register still shows the deceased as an owner, the buyer’s lawyer will need to see probate to verify that the executors have the legal authority to sign the transfer and complete the sale. The death certificate only confirms death and does not provide authority to deal with the deceased’s assets, a passport is irrelevant to authority, and a mortgage redemption statement relates to loan payoff, not the right to convey title. Therefore, probate is the correct evidential document to establish the surviving party’s ability to sell the property on behalf of the estate.