Riddle House

[littleleahstill]

No: HPFGUIDX 142479

--- In HPforGrownups at yahoogroups.com, "M. Thitathan" <h2so3f at y...> 
wrote:
>
> Luckdragon wrote:
> "Does Dumbledore own the riddle house? I know there were past 
discussions about the possibility of Lucius Malfoy possibly owning 
the house, but upon rereading GOF, I noted that the new owner 
continued to pay Frank Bryce to do the gardening even into his old 
age, at which point weeds were growing up everywhere."
> 
> 
>  
> CH3ed:
> 
> Don't know, mate. Lucius could have kept the place for dark 
>objects stash, perhaps (but then when Arthur Weasley was giving his 
>troubles in CoS he was dumping stuff off at Knockturn Alley)? I 
>don't know how estate laws in Britain work. It seems the Muggles 
>would think that the last of the Riddles died in that mysterious 
>triple deaths (I don't think LV's orphanage knew of the Riddles or 
>they would have sent him there, ay?). What happens to your things 
>in England if you die without any heir or family member left? Rich 
>people here in the States usually have a will and a family lawyer 
>to execute it. Any inputs from our English members?


We don't know if any of the Riddles left wills, but I would assume 
not. If they did, the property would have passed according to wills, 
but with the complication that it is not clear who died first. When 
a married appear to have died at the same time, English law presumes 
that the elder of them dies first.  It would be possible therefore 
that Riddle Snr's property would have passed to his wife, and then 
on the terms of her will to whoever she left the money to. If this 
was Tom Jnr then I think (but am not entirely sure) it would go to 
whoever he had designated in his will.

If there were no wills, then the property would have passed in much 
the same way, and legitimate children of Tom Riddle, ie Voldemort, 
would inherit under intestacy provisions.  Voldemort would have to 
be traced though, and advertisements placed in various newspapers to 
try and find the heirs.  If Voldemort could prove his descent from 
the Riddles, then he would get the Riddle house when he came of age 
(21 in those days).

If he wasn't traced or chose not to be traced, and no other Riddle 
relatives came forward, then the property would go to the Crown. The 
Crown's agents  would then sell or, if unable to sell, let out the 
property.  From the way the Riddle house is described in the first 
chapter of GOF, I see it as being sold shortly after the Riddles' 
death, and thereafter frequently changing owners. I don't see 
Voldemort ever using the house, as GOF says "...Frank did not 
leave.  He stayed to tend the garden for the next family who lived 
in the Riddle House". It is clear that the new owners, and their 
successors found the house disturbing, which would seem to suggest 
they were not DEs looking after the house for Voldemort or Lucius or 
whoever.  It also seems that the house was not let out, because GOF 
refers to each 'new owner' of the house (as opposed to tenant). 

I agree with CH3ed that DD may well have bought the house while 
carrying out his investigations into Voldemort's past.  He is a 
likely person to have continued to pay Frank, though if this is the 
case, he was not keeping much of an eye on it.

Leah