Joint calculation

I should be grateful if readers could offer some advice regarding the following scenario.

H inherited a house from his mother in June 1989 when it was valued at £55 000.

In June 2008 the property was registered in the joint names of H and his wife W; its value was estimated to be £135 000 at that time.

The property was sold in June 2009 for £130 000 less legal fees of £980.

Although the property was the mother’s main residence it is a second property as far as H and W are concerned and was never used by them as an only or main residence.

I would be very grateful if readers could provide some guidance as to which figures should be used when calculating the respective gains of H and W.

Query 17 729 – Langden

Reply from Hayloft

The question notes...