Matrimonial Home Charge

clairabell · 24 June 2009 at 4:17PM

I dont know if this is the right place to ask this question but im sure somebody will tell me if not. Myself and my husband are going through a divorce at the moment and he is selling our house (which is in his name only) in hampshire which we all lived in as a family. When we started divorce proceedings we place a matrimonial home charge on the property. They are due to exchange contracts on Friday and complete on the 2nd July but dispite numerous letters and phone clls o his solicitors and conveyancers saying that we will take the charge off the property when we have writtern confirmation that the profits from the sale will be kept pending a settlement we still havn't heard anything!!!!! Can this go through and be just ignored, there is about £80,000 profit in the house so you can understand why i dont want my cheating soon to be ex to have it all to himself. My solicitor cant understand why they haven't responded as im sure they would want it removed before the sale complete's. So could i be left with nothing while he walks away with it all???? Please help i am really starting to worry now :-( thanks xxx

zzzLazyDaisy · 24 June 2009 at 4:24PM

The sale can't go through unless the charge is removed.

You won't be the only one putting pressure on the ex's solicitor - the buyer's solicitor will also be pressing for confirmation that you have agreed to remove the charge. It may well be that your ex is refusing to agree to his solicitor giving the necessary undertaking, maybe because he does not see why you should get your hands on any of 'his' money. But that sale is going nowhere until you agree to remove the charge.

silvercar · 24 June 2009 at 4:26PM

They can't sell without removing the charge. They can't remove the charge without your agreement.

They are probably now weighing up their options. Is it worth then selling and not being able to access the money until the settlement? Only they can decide that.

clairabell · 24 June 2009 at 4:55PM

Thanks for that folks, you've set my mind at rest. He's been a pig all the way through with threats to kill etc etc (which he was cautioned for) anyone would think it was me who had run off with somone else (my sister in law by the way lmao) cant wait till the house is sold not only for the money but then i can finalise the divorce and have him out of our lives yay :-)

clairabell · 1 July 2009 at 2:37PM

Well the house is due to complete tomorrow (thursday) and i still havn't heard a word from his solicitors, the charge is still on the house and no-one has been in contact about removing it. I am getting really worried now :-( should i be???? My solicitor says he is doing all he can but is there anything i can do to find out some answers? surely they just cant ignore my rights over the property can they??

Mips · 1 July 2009 at 2:43PM

clairabell wrote: »

Well the house is due to complete tomorrow (thursday) and i still havn't heard a word from his solicitors, the charge is still on the house and no-one has been in contact about removing it. I am getting really worried now :-( should i be???? My solicitor says he is doing all he can but is there anything i can do to find out some answers? surely they just cant ignore my rights over the property can they??

Have you contacted the company he is selling with.. or the solicitor he is using?

If I were you and I were desperate I would be ringing around everywhere asking for information and trying to let this be known!

Pee · 1 July 2009 at 2:48PM

I think there would be no harm in letting the estate agent know. Are you sure the charge was registered properly? At the moment your info re exchange etc is presumably from unreliable outside sources. These may just be wrong.

SouthCoast · 1 July 2009 at 2:50PM

A £3 search at The Land Registry will confirm that your interest in the property has been registered.

clairabell · 1 July 2009 at 3:02PM

Got all the paperwork from the land registry so i know that the charge is definatly on the house, i am in contact with the estate agent who has told me alot of details re the sale which my ex wouldn't and she knows that the charge is on the house and has informed the buyers, called his solicitor the other day who said she couldnt discuss details with me but it was all being delt with and that she would write to my solicitor but havent had any contact from her as yet ......... :-(