House ownership after marriage

ambercelery

Hi

I'm posting this message on behalf of a colleague of mine for some information.
Basically, he currently owns his own property (well he is paying mortgage on his property) and he also has a mortgaged buy-to-let property.
He is due to get married in 2005 and obviously he completely loves and trusts his partner - he wants to guarantee that what he has worked hard for over the years is not put at risk - in case the marriage were to go wrong at some time.
How would his properties be treated were he to end up getting a divorce? i.e. are they considered half his wifes?
Are there any ways of ensuring that they remain 100% his property? Would he need to sign an agreement with his wife at the solicitors to say she will not try to claim the house/flat as being hers?
Or - one suggestion he has been told about (i'm not sure how true it is) is to create a company in his name - and transfer ownership of his property to his company. That way, the company owns the houses/flats and this company has nothing to do with his partner even after marriage.
Any suggestions/advice would be greatly appreciated.

Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year to you all.

lisyloo

How would his properties be treated were he to end up getting a divorce?

It would depend on the situation at the time.
If they had been married for 10 years and his wife had contributed either financially or by providing full time child care then her contribution will be taken into account.
What they have both brought into the relationship should also be taken into account.
Obviously if she has contributed financially this is easier to measure than if she has contributed by providing full time childcare, housework, cooking etc.

i.e. are they considered half his wifes?

Not automatically. It depends on what each has contributed both before and during the marriage.
Non financial contributions like child care are of course included. The exact split would depend on a judge if they can't agree between themselve.

Are there any ways of ensuring that they remain 100% his property?

Possibly, but if they have children then he will have to provide a home for his children until 18.
Sometime ther situation can arise where a man owns property but cannot live in it or sell it because he has to provide a home for his wife and children.
Things are generally a lot more complicated when chidlren are invoved.
If there are just 2 adults then the assets are split according to what they have contributed.
If there are children then there is the complication that the children must be housed and fed and provided with childcare (which often mean the mother must also be housed and fed i.e. maintained).

Would he need to sign an agreement with his wife at the solicitors to say she will not try to claim the house/flat as being hers?

He needs to see a solicitor but a pre-nuptual agreement is one possible solution.

one suggestion he has been told about is to create a company in his name - and transfer ownership of his property to his company

One downside is that if the company ever goes bust, then the property will go too. This might be unlikely if it's a company in name only and does nothing.
Often people put property in personal names instead of company names to avoid losing it due to the business going bust (in fact they often put it in the wifes name ironically).

Any suggestions/advice would be greatly appreciated.

Spend some money and get some proper advice.
It's not worth doing it on the cheap.
Web boards are great for getting ideas but there comes a point where you need to get advice from a solicitor.
Also he should of course discuss it with his future wife. If he approaches it sensibly then it should be fine.