Should I help them?

LegacyUser

Hi there,

I'm stuck in a bit of a dilemma and need some urgent advice please.

My sister and her husband asked me to meet them last night in their local. Half way through the evening my sister said; we have both something to ask you but we'd rather you think about it rather than give us an instant no.

They asked me would I buy their house from them as they felt their mortgage provider was going to foreclose on them and they were under a lot of pressure.

Now this is were it gets technical. The house is valued at 210k. They want me to purchase the house and three years from now when their financial situation improves (which it will)they will buy it back from me. It is a temporary arrangement.

I asked them what was in it for me and they looked at me like I'd lost my mind. Obviously they never thought that far!

As I've mentioned, their financial situation is guaranteed to improve in three years time but I think this is a lot they are asking of me and wonder is it cheeky of me to ask for some sort of financial guarantee from them until they purchase the house back from me?

If their increase in means in three years' time is such a guarantee, then the bank would be happy to accept it. Have they even tried to sit down with the bank and come up with a solution? How about asking you for a small loan to tide them by instead?

They sound a little scattered and irresponsible, and I would definitely not accept from the sounds of it.

R.D. aka MR.D

Think to yourself - 'What would happen if i never got the 210k back?'. If the answer is it would ruin your life then definitely don't go ahead with buying the house. But if you have the money to spare then you should go ahead and help them out.

But if you are going ahead make sure you protect yourself legally etc. Get some advice from a good solicitor.

best of luck!

Firetrap

I heard about this on the news this evening. Would it be of benefit to them?

I'd run screaming from this to be honest. As well as 210k being a staggeringly large amount of money for most of us mere mortals, you're dealing with an awful lot of unknowns here. How do you know for certain that things will be better in 3 years time. For all you know, they could be earning even less than they are now. They could be on the dole. They might be wanting to emigrate. They might (God forbid) have split up by then. All of which leaves you holding the baby so to speak. I'm pretty sure too that their house will be worth even less in 3 years time so you'll have a depreciated asset on your hands, should you need to sell. I just can't help but think you're getting the short end of the stick here and that they're pulling a smart one.

I'd like to know are you absolutely their last resort? Have they looked into all over avenues?

tenchi-fan

takingoutmortgage wrote: »

Now this is were it gets technical. The house is valued at 210k. They want me to purchase the house and three years from now when their financial situation improves (which it will)they will buy it back from me. It is a temporary arrangement.

I asked them what was in it for me and they looked at me like I'd lost my mind. Obviously they never thought that far!

What's in it for you?

A warm fuzzy feeling at best.

In reality, the arrangement could see you getting sued by the bank.

Or your sister and her husband could split up and you could end up with her husband taking you to court.

You could end up with a large capital gains tax liability when the house goes up in value.

You could end up paying a form of Benefit in Kind for the preferential nature of the agreement. Possibly income tax at the market rate of rent on the house.

You might need social assistance yourself, and will be refused because you own the property.

You're taking on all the risk of investing and property ownership without any of the benefits.

And if you do decide to take legal advice on the arrangement it will cost you hundreds if not thousands (although in reality, your solicitor will likely tell you not to touch the deal with a 10 foot pole)

Your sister and husband they are too smart for their own good. Tell them you are not in the financial position to help them. Oh, and their financial position is not "guaranteed" to improve in three years. If it was, the bank wouldn't be in a hurry to foreclose on their home.

LegacyUser

Eh, houses are for nothing now. You can take your pick. Why on earth would you buy theirs?

Just tell them no deal. It's a very bad idea to get involved with family and property anyway.

If the bank is about to foreclose on them, then they probably have arrears and their credit rating will be bad, hence they won't even be eligible to qualify for a mortgage in three years.

Plus the housing market has not yet bottomed out by a long shot. It's absolute madness. They sound very either very clueless or entitled. It's not your problem to be bailing them out of their financial problems.

Tell them to find another mug!

I am a friend

Now don't mix business and family. Btw, where are they expecting to live for the 3 years? Do you pay the mortgage and they live there for free?

Wompa1

Don't do it. I made a similar mistake years ago. I barely got a thanks.

Distorted

I think its an ill thought out plan, born out of desperation on their part. I doubt the problems it might cause you has ever entered their heads. Would it be for you to buy instead of buying somewhere to live yourself, or an actual investment property? Thats tieing you up for a long time.

Would they propose to pay rent to you in the three years? If not, how would you ever get them to move out? If so, what would happen when they are "short" at the end of the month. What if the mortgage provider found out you were renting it out and refused permission?

They need to sort out their own problems and not look for someone to provide them with an easy way out, with no thought as to how that affects the other person.

sharper

The bank is not going to give you a mortgage for more than the market value nor will it give it to them in 3 years time. If you buy the house now with your own money then you're essentially betting on the market rebounding and then some within three years in order for them to be able to get a mortgage and buy it back.

If the house isn't going to be your primary residence then the bank treat you differently, you'll be a "buy to let" customer then so you can count on needing a higher deposit and paying a higher interest rate.

The reality is in three years time they'll want another year or two. After that they'll want more time. If they're living in the place and you're paying for it there's really no reason for them to ever end the arrangement.

mikemac

How do you know their money situation will be improved in three years? Nobody knows that
And if it was possible to show it would happen they should be in the bank making arrangements

If you buy it and you letting them live there rent free? Rent will be the very least several thousand a year, are they going to pay you?
Are they even going to cover your interest payments?

Run, run screaming from this, don't even touch this.
You say yourself they weren't thinking about you.

amdublin

No.
It's not a dilemma, it's a stupid idea.

thefeatheredcat

takingoutmortgage wrote: »

They asked me would I buy their house from them as they felt their mortgage provider was going to foreclose on them and they were under a lot of pressure.

Now this is were it gets technical. The house is valued at 210k. They want me to purchase the house and three years from now when their financial situation improves (which it will)they will buy it back from me. It is a temporary arrangement.

Temporary arrangement meaning no involvement with solicitors or legal advice I take it? In other words, an informal agreement that will be your word against theirs and no formal contract, an arrangement between family.

How much did they buy the house for? Even if it's worth 210k now, house prices have yet to bottom out (and don't listen to the media hype that they stirred up some months ago about it actually happening as prices still tumbled) so 210K would be most likely wasted.

There's nothing in it for you at all. Whether you get a formal contract or not, legally binding or not, I don't know, but I'm guessing if they're desperate regarding foreclosure (unless you're in the US it doesn't happen half as quick as you might think) you're going to be dumped in a bit of a mess especially when it comes to responsibility, taxes, waste charges, water charges that all have to be factored in, not to mention the credit rating attached to the address if you deemed to be the legal owner (can you afford that side of things?) and the fact there is no certainty that they will be in a financial position in 3 years time to purchase it back, and even so, at what price?


One other thing I'd say is the legal end... this sounds like a round about way of doing something under the table on the quiet... If you're to buy it at 210K where are they going with the money? Are they buying somewhere else, starting a new life elsewhere, or investing that money in some stocks, or a new business venture?

If I was asked that, I'd be staying well out of it. It sounds like a clutching straws strategy shot in the dark whereby only they win out of the situation with the money in their pocket under an informal arrangement that probably will not have a legal standing for you if it all went wrong.

LegacyUser

Your name wouldn't happen to be NAMA by any chance??? It's a crazy idea, if you don't own a home already you'll disqualify yourself as a first time buyer when you go to buy your own home in a few years time. Stamp duty on your purchase...stamp duty on their purchase back, interest if you take a loan, no obligation on their part to follow through on the deal and buy back.

If you have the money to buy their home then why not just offer to help them out with their mortgage repayments while they're in difficulty...with an agreement that they'll pay you back in 3 years when things improve.

Money and family don't mix...you have your own life to lead and yourself to protect in this life. By all means be charitable but only do what you can afford to do...your own circumstances can change quickly too!!!

Diddler1977

takingoutmortgage wrote: »

They asked me would I buy their house from them as they felt their mortgage provider was going to foreclose on them and they were under a lot of pressure.

Tell them the "Bank of You" is closed for business.

Wait, hang on. You aren't actually a bank. You are a family member. You are not here to give financial dig outs of €210,000.

This is €210,000 you will never see again. In 3 years time, this house will be worth €140,000. No bank will give your sister 210,000 to buy it back from you. You will be stuck with a house that you never actually made a conscious decision to buy.

Plus if you are currently a first time buyer you will lose that status on this house purchase. This will have implications for the future.

Do you have a partner? Do you want to buy your own house? Will you want to do this in the future?

Do not let yourself be taken advantage of by your sis and her husband.

Just say "NO".

BTW this is not actually a personal issue, it is more of a financial issue. www.askaboutmoney.com is a good forum for this type of query.

Further more, your sister and husband may well find themselves in a worse situation in 3 years then they are currently in.

Resi12

Where in the hell are they going to get 210K in 3 short years if they can't afford it now?!

No way. I am sorry, it is noble you are even considering it but the most you can do is try to help them find a more reasonable and sane solution with a bank/credit union. If they decline this offer you should consider yourself very lucky because they never wanted your help, just your money.

If they accept you are still helping them and are not putting your livelihood and everything you have worked for at risk.

Billy7878

wow, what a risky endeavour, you stand a lot to lose and very very little to gain, dont do it!

jimmycrackcorm

Billy7878 wrote: »

wow, what a risky endeavour, you stand a lot to lose and very very little to gain, dont do it!

+1. You would be taking on a huge risk. There are no absolute guarantees.
You need to turn the tables on them and be insulted that they would treat you so badly as to think that you can assume such a huge debt.

I can understand why they looked blank when you asked what was in it for you but the question you should have asked is why would they put such a huge burden on you?

Tayla

No way OP,

ANYTHING COULD HAPPEN IN 3 YEARS

Don't do it, there are so many things that can go wrong.

qwerty13

You are so decent to even give this a second's thought! But for your own sake, steer clear:
- they simply can't predict the future and know how they will be financially in 3 yrs time
- what if they split up
- what if you all fall out
- if anything terrible happened, who would be the legal owner of the house? - I'm not being nasty here, but you could be left with nothing
- what if you want to buy a house in the meantime
- what if you need to get a mortgage
- how would this 'arrangement' affect your credit rating
- how would it affect your day-to-day lifestyle (assuming you don't have 210k in your back pocket!)
- what if you really need your money back (to emigrate, because of illness)
- what would happen if you were means tested for some benefit in the future?
- how would it affect your tax?
- did they say if they intend you to be the full legal owner?
- do they propose to pay you rent, or live there for free?
- what will happen if the house ends up being worth far less in 3 yrs time - will they try to 'buy it back' for less

I think lots (if not all!) of those points have been covered by others, I guess I wanted to put as many things down in one post as I could possibly think of to highlight the point that they seem to be only thinking of how to get themselves out of a financial hole - have they considered at all how this would impact your life OP? I'm sorry but I think that unless you have a spare 210k - and actually even if you did, it is still your money to fund your life - then time to say NO!

Miss Fluff

takingoutmortgage wrote: »

The house is valued at 210k. They want me to purchase the house and three years from now when their financial situation improves (which it will)they will buy it back from me. It is a temporary arrangement.

You see, this to me, demonstrates how totally hair-brained this idea is. How in hell are they guaranteed that their financial situation will improve in three years? There's a decent chance we're going to be in the midst of a double-dip recession and there's a decent chance that the house will be worth even less than the 210k. So will they buy it back well over the odds @ 210k or at market value which could potentially be a mere % of what it's worth now?

Don't even for one moment entertain the thought of getting involved. If you love you sister (which you clearly do) and would like to keep your relationship with her and have her in your life then tell her you're not in a position to help her. This is doomed. I think even asking you in the first place is totally out of order but that's a whole different thread.....

leahyl

No way OP - they obviously haven't even thought about you in all of this. Sure anything could happen in 3 years!! Why don't they just rent it out if they are so sure everythings going to be dandy in 3 years??

LegacyUser

takingoutmortgage wrote: »

Hi there,

They asked me would I buy their house from them .....

The house is valued at 210k. They want me to purchase the house and three years from now when their financial situation improves (which it will)they will buy it back from me.

I asked them what was in it for me...!

As I've mentioned, their financial situation is guaranteed to improve in three years time .....

I have edited your post above to extract what I think is the relevant parts.
I have to admit to seeing this from a different perspective to other posters. Taking everything you say as being accurate, i.e. value of house, financial situation guaranteed, etc. and the fact that you presumably have the money available, what you are being asked is to do a favour for your sister and her husband. Lets separate the financial arrangements from the favour for a moment.

You seem to know the market value of the property and that the financial situation is guaranteed. Assuming this is the case you can have a solicitor draw up an arrangement that will protect you interests.

If you do a favour for you sister then you will probably not get a financial return on your investment. I assume you feel that you would make the lone if you were offered some financial incentive. Surely not the attitude of a caring brother?

Diddler1977

OP would you have to get a mortgage to buy this house?

This could be a handy way of getting out of giving them money. Banks are currently saying they give 3-4 times your salary in a mortgage. If your salary wouldn't be enough for this mortgage it could be wise to tell them you don't have the finances available. Plus a bank would expect you to have a 10%+ cash deposit.

Plus there would be legal fees to pay on top of this. As well as possibly stamp duty etc.

OS119

OP, like others i see this arrangement as a disaster waiting to happen for all the reasons outlined in the thread, and i wouldn't agree to it - unless i'd won the EuroLottery - in a million years.

however, if you want to help, but don't fancy this way to help, you could offer to loan them money to pay off their arrears - this would stop the foreclosure in its tracks.

i'm neither advising you to do this, or advising against it (i don't know your financial position, i don't know how trustworthy you see your sister and her hubby as being, and i don't know if you actually want to help them), merely suggesting a potentially less problematic avenue...

the only caveat i'd make is that if they do get repossesed, you could find the 'irritation' of lending them money overshadowed by the nightmate of them turning up on either your, or your family's, doorstep.

good luck.

Katgurl

ok i think we are all agreed that financially / practically this is a bad idea and all the risk is on your part.

But what screams out at me from your post is that when you asked what was in it for you, they looked at you like you were crazy.

The CHEEK of them. They are not your teenage (therefore completely self-obsesssed and incapable of considering anyone else's perspective) children. How dare they just scheme up a plan to suit themselves and only themselves.

Tell them to **** off and sort out their own mess.

woodchuck

I don’t think I can add anything more to what has already been said. I just wanted to reiterate that this is a TERRIBLE idea!!! (for reasons already stated) You should in NO way feel bad by turning them down. I can’t believe they would ask that of you!

How on earth do they know what their finances are going to be like in 3 years time?! (that’s a genuine question btw)

LegacyUser

If the bank is about to foreclose on their home that means they have arrears. If they have arrears then their credit rating is bad. If their credit rating is bad then they are not eligible for a mortgage in three years.

Their plan is total pie in the sky.

I'm worried that you already seem to have decided to do this. You used the name 'Taking Out a mortgage' -please do NOT take out a mortgage for them. It's madness.

As for:

As I've mentioned, their financial situation is guaranteed to improve in three years time but I think this is a lot they are asking of me and wonder is it cheeky of me to ask for some sort of financial guarantee from them until they purchase the house back from me?

No-one's financial situation is guaranteed to improve in three years. That is laughable.

I'm worried especially about the last line where you ask is it cheeky to ask for some sort of financial guarantee?

Firstly, that sounds like they have persuaded you to do it? Don't.
Secondly, would it be cheeky to ask for a guarantee? No, of course not but it would be stupid in the exteme to enter this plan.
Thirdly, they will not be in a position to buy the house back from you. They wont qualify for a mortgage. And I'd be extremely sceptical of any plan they have where they imagine their income will be guaranteed to rise in the next three years. They're dreaming.

The market value of houses has yet to bottom out. This is a bad idea for you. Please don't be gullible and do it. They are desperate and the fact that they were shocked when you asked what was in it for you proves how badly thought out the plan is.

Even if you wanted to you can't help them without ruining yourself.

LegacyUser

Hi OP,

I was really annoyed to hear your post, i can't believe they expect this of you, its such a big ask, and how they are mentally spending your money???

Its funny how they are making you feel like you are being unreasonable or tight or something for asking whats in it for you?


If they are like this now, i think its a sign of what the future would be like with dealing with them, for your own sanity i would think you should not go down this road with them.


Are you a millionaire or something with loads of cash to spare that they think you have the ways and means to help them as if its just a small simple thing?


I would say, i love you.... but no.

How ever they take that is up to them then, and will show you how much respect they have for you.

amdublin

Op, ring your sister and tell her you've rang your bank and a broker and they have told you that you have zero chance of getting a mortgage.
End of.

It is a ridiculous idea. Have nothing to do with it.

OS119

takingoutmortgage wrote: »

As I've mentioned, their financial situation is guaranteed to improve in three years time but I think this is a lot they are asking of me and wonder is it cheeky of me to ask for some sort of financial guarantee from them until they purchase the house back from me?

OP, i'm not sure by what means you think they are 'guaranteed' to be much better off in three years - but do you not think that the word 'guarantee' has lost much of its currency in the last 4 years?

you can ask them for some kind of 'financial guarantee' so that if this goes wrong you won't be out of pocket, but they have already given a 'financial guarantee' to their mortgage provider, and lets look at how that is working out...

on a very practical note, if they can't afford to pay their mortgage on the house, how will they pay your mortgage on the house - how many months short rent will you accept before you have to kick them out - 3, 6, 9, 12, till their youngest finishes uni?

if this goes tits up and in four years you need to sell the house, what happens when these bad-credit-rating, financially unreliable people come back from their mortgage meeting at the bank with ashen faces?

what will this scheme do to you if, in four years time after they've discovered they won't get another mortgage in this lifetime, you sell the house at a loss to you of €70,000?

if you want to help them, you have the money, and you don't want to have to answer these questions, just help them with the arrears. once they are gone the pressure is off - though that asumes of course that this 'guarantee' they have of a windfall isn't an email from a Nigerian Prince...

zxcvbnm1

Presu,mbaly if you biuy this you will be buying it as a 2nd home - in which case it is an investment mortgage - and you will also have to pay investor stamp duty. 0- as well as investor interest rates.
You will als have to register with prtb. There is also teh 2nd home costs.

Are they prepared to give you all these costs to ensure you are out of pocket?

Lets say the house dramatically rises in the next 3 years? Who gets the uplift? You or them?
WHo pays teh capital gains tax

Likewise - if it falls, who covers teh cost of the fall? You or them?

Also - your tax returns will chanmge as this is income from rent (i presume you would rent it to them)
are you buying thsi all in one go with your own cash/ Are you getting a small/large mortgage?

ONly 75% of the income is tax-deductoibe. Does thsi arrangement have the net effect of increasing your tax bill?
Who covers this extra cost?

To e honest - if teh whole general plan is that you wlak away with no loss/gain then it is a difficult enough thing to hammer out when you get down to the nitty-gritty.

In terms of the financial comp;lexities i would recommend you copy and paste this post to teh forum askaboutmoney.
They will undoubtedly think of more practiclal financial complexities with this arrangement.

My own guess is that your sister hasn't thought this through properly at all.

Neyite

Op, its unlikely you would even get a mortgage, as the banks are simply not lending. They say that they will in the preliminaries, but throw loads of red tape in once you are ready to put an offer on a house.

I know several people who have excellent credit rating, sometimes owning other properties outright who cant even qualifiy for as little as 50,000 euro of a loan.

LegacyUser

OP I would not advise you to do this. A few years ago my OH ended up having to buy her parents house as they could not afford the mortgage and had borrowed several €k off us that they could not pay back.
she agreed to buy it and they would pay 'rent' each month to cover the mortgage.
Its a nightmare. Her parents rarely pay him back on time so she has several times had to pay it out of her own wages which when she is also paying for her own home that we rent is financially crippling.
Her sisters will no longer speak to her because she has apparently 'taken away their inheritance' which is ironic since they wouldnt have any if the house had been foreclosed plus niether of them could have bought the house themselves and they already own their own house.
she is having to pay the house insurance as well plus good luck to her being able to get a mortgage when we want to buy our own house.

I would never ever advise anyone to do this. No ones financial situation will 'definately' improve in three years. Her parents promised the money every month yet some months she is left hanging and they don't care

amdublin

Can you not just help them out with their mortgage payments instead of buying their bloody house?!

Firetrap

Good question. And one that makes this stink even more than it already stinks.

Moomoo1

perhaps they really want you to lend them money, but are too afraid to ask. This way you are actually buying from them, so they preserve their dignity.

it's a crazy idea, you stand to lose more money (even if house prices do not go down, and also on all sorts of taxes and fees) than you would lose if you pay their installments for three years and they find they cannot pay you back.

One thing you should ask for it a full explanation of what's going on and exactly how bad their financial state is.

jimmycrackcorm

amdublin wrote: »

Can you not just help them out with their mortgage payments instead of buying their bloody house?!

Absolutely not because they've shown that they would not do the same for the op.

I am a friend

No reply from op? Clarity around some issuwould be a great help to formulate responses.

LegacyUser

Sorry about delay in responding to the replies on here.

Just to give some background on the situation.

My sisters husband was made redundent a couple of years ago. He has had part time jobs but no substantial income to pay the mortgage they had taken out. My sister has also been made unemployed.

The mortgage they took out was for in and around 380k. They had it valued recently and was told it was now valued in the region of 200k plus so a dramatic decrease and massive negative equity.

They approached their mortgage provider and showed them numerous valuations from different auctioneers and explained to them that they would sell the property but it didn't look like they would fetch much more than 200k. From what I am lead to believe the bank were reasonable in their negotiations with them.

So the plan they had hatched the other evening was to put their home up for sale for 200k approx and for me to make an offer.

They hope that if my offer is accepted they can then pay off a chunk of the mortgage and probably get the remainder of the mortgage put into a a personal loan.

They then subsequently want to rent the house bank from me (the landlord)! If they do this, they say they will be paying a much, much smaller amount each month. The plan is to purchase the house back from me when their finances improve.

I know for a fact that my brother in law has 60k in his fathers account and he will be coming into an inheritence.

That is why I asked them for a couple of thousand Euro so I could hold it on deposit just in case they done a runner!

I am no millionaire just an ordinary Joe Soap who would have to apply for a mortgage if I was to go through with the above. I am not a first time buyer.

amdublin

Thanks for the background.

Did you read any of our posts?

Don't do it!

Tell them to sell their house to someone else and rent some other house.
Why are they obsessed with holding on to this one stupid house

amdublin

takingoutmortgage wrote: »

I am no millionaire just an ordinary Joe Soap who would have to apply for a mortgage if I was to go through with the above. I am not a first time buyer.

€60k is so minimal in the scheme of things it is just not worth talking about.

Tell them you rang a bank and a broker and you have no chance of getting a mortgage.

It is a stupid idea on so many different levels. Family or not, have nothing to do with it.

Cunning Stunt

Redundant and un-employed, and they are promising you that they can buy back the house in 3 years time?

House prices are still falling - that house will be worth even less in a years time and YOU will be the one in negative equity.

What's the point in your looking for a few thousand deposit off them? How is a few thousand gonna help you when you are up to your eyeballs in negative equity and debt?

I can't believe they would be so selfish as to try to drag you down with them. You need to tell them NO.

mikemac

A house in Ireland would cost five hundred a month to rent at least and probably more then this.

Are they going to pay you several hundred a month in rent? Whatever the market price in the area is

I doubt it and as they are family at best they'll pay under market rate and at worst they won't pay you rent.
And these worries break up marriages, what if they split and you're left holding the house?

Even Seany Fitz would find this risky :pac:

woodchuck

takingoutmortgage wrote: »

I know for a fact that my brother in law has 60k in his fathers account and he will be coming into an inheritence.

So the 60k is inheritance from his father that he’s expecting to get in 3 years time? I’m assuming the father is ill and this is the amount of time he has left according to the doctors (or correct me if I’m wrong). If this is the case… then this is NOT a guarantee of being able to afford to buy the house back off you in 3 years!! What happens if/when his father does not die in 3 years time? My own grandmother was told she had 6 months to live… about 8 years ago and she’s still alive today (but in poor health still). This is not a rare occurrence and the longer he lives the more of that money will get spent on convalescence/nursing homes/careers etc and his inheritance will be significantly lessens when he eventually gets it.

All in all I don’t think you’ve mentioned anything new that makes this any more of a good idea than what came across from your original post.

PLEASE don’t do this… you are bound to regret it. Even if you’ve already told them you will, there is still time to get out of it.

Janet1986

Tell them your name isn't vincent or paul :mad:

Don't do it!

thefeatheredcat

So mortgage was 380k and property is now valued around 200k and are asking for a region of 200k from you to purchase the house to pay off a sum of the mortgage, the remains of 180k into a loan (plus interest, I assume) and with a 60k inheritance that may or may not appear in 3 years' time?

OK well firstly on the open market they probably would sell the house for less... even valued at around 200k if demand is low, they will have to drop the price or take it off the market if there is no interest in it.

Did they discuss the possibility of the personal loan part with their mortgage lender? Or is this just something they think they can do?

As there's no guarantee on the inheritance of 60K, (as his father might change his mind about everything or indeed could have run up debts of his own which that 60k may need to pay off, or that 60k may have already been spent but considered to still "be there" as far as anyone else knows) I would be reluctant to heed the promise of being able to purchase it back.

And again, at what price would they be purchasing it back? I would assume at market value?

My advice is put yourself first. There are many factors you need to consider and you need to know that the expressed intent is actually going to happen and not just a plan to get themselves out of one hole and into another or completely in the clear by moving their debt to someone else. Consider the fact that as a landlord you will have a responsibility to the property and some related charges and the costs associated with this, as well as taking rent off them (are they going to be able to afford the rent, or are they going to think you're going to be a soft touch where a few weeks here and there can go unpaid for the sake of them paying off the personal loan or other items because you're related?). There is of course, them upholding their side of things - but what if they are faced with the prospect of emigrating for work or relocating around Ireland? Is the property somewhere that you would be able to find new tenants easily or be prepared to sell at a loss if necessary?

One lump sum of 60k which is NOT guaranteed in 3 years let alone in any years (what if he has massive medical debts to repay ffs), and you call this an improvement in their financial situation which is definite? come on.
This idea is becoming more and more stupid. And it didn't start off too well either.

foxinsox

OP,

Please read all the advice in here..

DO NOT do this, it is so unfair of them to even ask you.

Just say you can't get a mortgage.

Firetrap

OP,I can only join with the others in hoping that you take our advice and don't go ahead with this. Not one person has said that it's a great idea and to go ahead with it. Ask yourself why.

Sarn

Even if the bank allows them to carry the negative equity as a personal loan, the interest rate could be double to triple the rate they are currently being charged on their mortgage. On top of this they would need to pay you rent and save up to take the mortgage off you. As pointed out, it is very unlikely that they would be offered a mortgage in three years time (even then they'd only get the market value minus deposit).

This deal will last a lot longer than three years and will cost the OP a lot of lost money and family trouble.