Partner Rent Disagreement

BumbleBee11_2 · 17 April 2017 at 10:05AM

New here, so apologies if wrong area.

I own my own house and my partner and I are discussing him moving in with me. He currently lives with his family paying minimal rent per month. The issue is he said if he moves in he will happily pay half of all council tax, food and utility bills, but disagrees to pay half of the mortgage (which is just over £500pm). His reasoning for this is its my mortgage which is my loan on the house, why should he pay half of a mortgage when in years to come he still won't own any of the property. On the other hand he said if it was a rented property he would gladly pay half of that, but his issue with contributing towards the mortgage is that it's my house and therefore the mortgage should be up to me.

I see where he's coming from, but I just can't get past the feeling that alongside utilities, some sort of rent should be paid for using/living in the property. Paying just a couple of hundred pounds a month for full use of it when I'm paying much more seems bizarre, even though I know long term I benefit because I own it.

What are other people's thoughts on this?

Thanks

Livelongandprosper · 17 April 2017 at 10:40AM

I'm with him.

It's your house, not his.

He is contributing to living with you by sharing the costs of the utilities which will increase because of the fact he's there. Your mortgage payments won't change

FBaby · 17 April 2017 at 10:40AM

Your house is two things: The roof over your head and an asset. You want him to consider your house a roof over his head, and he wants you to see it as an asset that will grow in value.

Personally, I'm with him. If you want him to pay rent, you are in effect his partner AND his landlord. Do you want such a relationship? How would you feel if he demanded that you do some repairs, and if you suddenly wanted him out, you would have to give him 2 months notice and possible have to take him to court for an eviction order? Because that's what it's like to be a landlord.

Diary · 17 April 2017 at 10:49AM

BumbleBee11 wrote: »

New here, so apologies if wrong area.

I own my own house and my partner and I are discussing him moving in with me. He currently lives with his family paying minimal rent per month. The issue is he said if he moves in he will happily pay half of all council tax, food and utility bills, but disagrees to pay half of the mortgage (which is just over £500pm). His reasoning for this is its my mortgage which is my loan on the house, why should he pay half of a mortgage when in years to come he still won't own any of the property. On the other hand he said if it was a rented property he would gladly pay half of that, but his issue with contributing towards the mortgage is that it's my house and therefore the mortgage should be up to me.

I see where he's coming from, but I just can't get past the feeling that alongside utilities, some sort of rent should be paid for using/living in the property. Paying just a couple of hundred pounds a month for full use of it when I'm paying much more seems bizarre, even though I know long term I benefit because I own it.

What are other people's thoughts on this?

Thanks

Your boyfriend is in the right.
If yours and his thoughts are so fundamentally different on money ask yourself very carefully if you want him to move in given the resentment that will build up. He'll pay rent in a rented house but not pay you rent is a huge difference in opinion.

LilElvis · 17 April 2017 at 10:53AM

If he moves out in 2 years and your house has gone up in value by £20,000 during that time will you be happy to give him £10,000 - his half of the increase?

jackieblack · 17 April 2017 at 11:00AM

LilElvis wrote: »

If he moves out in 2 years and your house has gone up in value by £20,000 during that time will you be happy to give him £10,000 - his half of the increase?

Yes, this! ^^^^

Are you happy for him to acquire a beneficial interest in your home?
https://www.citizensadvice.org.uk/family/relationship-problems/relationship-breakdown-and-housing/if-you-live-with-your-partner-relationship-breakdown-and-housing/if-you-live-with-your-partner-and-you-own-your-home-relationship-breakdown-and-housing/relationship-breakdown-and-housing-beneficial-interest-if-your-partner-owns-the-home/

onomatopoeia99 · 17 April 2017 at 11:05AM

I have a read up on the concept of "beneficial interest".

If he moves in as a lodger and doesn't have sex with you, you can charge him rent and he doesn't gain an interest in your property.
If he moves in as a boyfriend and does have sex with you, if you charge him rent beyond a share of utilities and food, then he potentially gains an interest in your property.
(people have told me on here that the nature of the relationship between landlord and tennant is crucial to whether an interest is established, though none have cited specific legislation)

Basically, if you own a home already, the law makes it a terrible idea to move a partner that doesn't in with you. Buy a house together with equal contributions instead.

[Deleted User] · 17 April 2017 at 11:07AM

I had this conversation with my boyfriend.
I didn't expect him to pay 'towards the mortgage' but I did ask for us to jointly put into an account a maintenance fee for jobs that may need doing or white goods that may need replacing.
As he was gaining by paying no rent etc and I still had a mortgage I thought it fair that if anything needed doung/replacing we both should contribute.
He thought this was unfair as where he rented his rent covered all of this.....
Needless to say he's a ex now and paying £495 a month to rent a 1 bed flat that he's not looked after and neither has the landlord. On top of paying all the other bills.

I only asked him for £100 a month on top of the usual council tax and bills etc. As I thought that fair.
And my mortgage will be paid off within 3 years.
Amazing how he'd pay £495 a month to someone else rather than £100 to me because he thought I'd gain...

krlyr · 17 April 2017 at 11:10AM

I would recommend looking into the legalities of this from your POV first. As others have said, him paying towards to mortgage (or other repairs/maintenance on the property) may result in him having a financial claim against your property should you split, even if he's not on the mortgage.

Gavin83 · 17 April 2017 at 11:15AM

BumbleBee11 wrote: »

His reasoning for this is its my mortgage which is my loan on the house, why should he pay half of a mortgage when in years to come he still won't own any of the property.

Except legally speaking he will.

There isn't really a way around this. Either he pays some of your mortgage and then has an interest in your property or he just pays the utilities (like he's suggesting) and doesn't.

Sagz_2 · 17 April 2017 at 11:18AM

OH of 11 years has always lived "rent free" in my house. Should we split he is aware that he has no claim on my property. It just seems simpler that way, and works for us.

Could your partner save a suitable amount each month in place of the rent he is not paying you? As a couple you can then decide how to spend the savings? He could even "buy in" to your home in the future.

Partner Rent Disagreement

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