Help Needed - Relationship Breakdown - Mortgage & Contents Advice Please

misskalwhite

[SIZE=+0]My ex-partner & I have lived together in a jointly owned (50% each) mortgaged property for the passed 2 years 3 Months. The relationship has broken down and I will be (sadly) leaving my home, due to my partner earning more money than me and being able to cope financially better and remaining in the home. [/SIZE]
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[SIZE=+0]However, over the passed 2 years & 3 months, I have contributed approx £1000 to the joint account each month and my partner approx £2000, where the mortgage, utilities and house furniture, furnishings and decorations came out of. [/SIZE]
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[SIZE=+0][SIZE=+0]We are trying to come to an agreement. The house is worth around the same as it was when we brought it over 2 years ago. However, my ex-partner believes that the cost of the fees to sell the house should be taken away from anything that is due to me, even though he is not intending on selling the house and is remaining living there! Is it possible that you can clarify if I need to contribute towards the fees of selling the house even though my ex-partner has no intention of selling the house just yet?[/SIZE][/SIZE]
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[SIZE=+0][SIZE=+0]Another contentious matter is the dividing of the contents. A large majority of the contents in the house was purchased out of the joint account to which I contributed to. I believe that fairly and morally I have a claim of 33% on the contents. In 2 years would you say it is fair to say that this 33% is based on what we paid for them? Or what they are worth now? Or to do with the manufacturers given life of each item, and then taking away the 2 years and 3 months (approx - some things were brought far more recently) that I had had use out of? [/SIZE][/SIZE]
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[SIZE=+0][SIZE=+0]Also, if I move out of the home, do I relinquish any claim I have on the contents??? I believe I am being fair by just requesting a third when my name owns half the property according to the mortgage and I did inform my ex-partner that as a good will gesture he can keep my name on the mortgage until it is up for renewal in February 2010 to save any rearrangement fees or refusals in offering him a mortgage (because of the market conditions)[/SIZE][/SIZE]
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[SIZE=+0][SIZE=+0]I would really very much appreciate any advice or guidance that you can offer me, I am really keen to move on with my life and only want what is fair to me.I do believe that I am in a far worse position that my ex-partner and it is being made worse by is unreasonableness.[/SIZE][/SIZE]

Mrs_Bumble

You say that you the house is jointly owned, is that with a joint mortgage, what is going to happen with that? If you remain on the mortgage and leave the property you are still jointly and severally liable for the debt.

In answer to the rest of your questions I think best advice would be to get some legal advice, do you have access to a legal helpline through your buildings and contents insurance or you could try http://www.communitylegaladvice.org.uk/

misskalwhite

Thank you very much for your reply.

We are both on the mortgage as equal joint owners, however as I have contributed a third to the household each month, I am happy to just settle for a third of anything that is owed to me / rightly mine.

As a goodwill gesture I said I would remain on the mortgage until it is due for renewal in Feb 2010. Otherwise he would need to remortgage and that would result in fees and a possible refusal of him getting another mortgage without a big deposit with the way the market is at the moment.

Yes, I think I am going to have to bite the bullet and get some legal advice...

Thanks again

Mrs_Bumble

Just keep an eye on your credit report then and if I was you I would also let them know your new address so that they can send you any information in relation to the mortgage direct. Whilst you are on the mortgage if he didn't pay it will be your credit history that is affected.

SarBear1980

Are you saying that you will only claim a third of any equity in the house as well?

If you can dig out your original purchase documents, there should have been an information sheet from the solicitor that you had to complete which determines what proportion of the property is yours. If you are 'joint owners' the split can be argued either way through a solicitor therefore you shouldn't just settle for a third. If you stated you were 'partners in common' with a specified split then you can't legally deviate from that split.

With regards to your property, if you were common law partners, you're entitled to half. You shouldn't have to give in to paying for the selling fees! I think you're doing more than enough by not making him sell up before the mortgage is up for renewal. That is saving him money.

Get legal advice but don't let him walk all over you, especially if it was a matually agreed split.

figgles

While the advice is good to seek legal advice and clarification about the split, dont forget that it could be that you are 1/3 liable for the debt. House prices have dropped a lot since you purchased it, and you could find you are going to have to stay on that mortgage for a long time if your ex can't get a new mortgage without you on it.

If you had a 95% mortgage just over 2 years ago you could find that it's now a 110% mortgage, i.e. it's in negative equity which means that it's going to be very difficult for it to be re-mortgaged without a significan deposit as an investment.

Have you got rough figures (i.e. price paid for house, LTV of mortgage) to give a better idea?

belfastgirl23

I think you have sort of made a mistake by starting with the 30%. My starting point for negotiation would have been 50/50 and would have settled for 30% of everything including contents - hopefully this would do away with the squabbling over contents etc. may be worth asking the solicitor about this.

Also could you just take one third of the contents instead of getting into all this debate?

beecher

As figgles says, don't bank on your partner being able to take on the mortgage himself. You may feel he can afford it but the bank will use its present lending criteria to judge for themselves - what sort of salary multiple will he be looking at? Also the LTV might mean he's stuck on the SVR. You may well be liable for half of the negative equity so I think you need to look into all now rather than leaving it til the fixed rate comes to an end.

gizmo111

Who put down the deposit?
How much was it?
What is the house value now and what is the outstanding mortgage?
Regards the costs of selling being deducted from your share, I think it is fair that some of these costs (although hypothetical at the moment) should reduce your pay out as if you were actually selling that is what you would get - you can't afford to keep the property therefore if he wasn't buying you out then you would have no choice but to pay some of the costs.

Regards the household items you just need to be adult about the split and decide who needs what. List all you have bought together and take it from there - for example if you are going into furnished rented you may not need a cooker or fridge so it would be pointless arguing over it, but you may need a washing machine or freezer and that can be negotiated over. You may really like the dinner service you ahve, and he may be happy with just a couple of plates. Carpets and flooring obvioulsy will be left but you should be able to choose something else that benefits you.

ChrispyDuck

Well done misskalwhite for having some morals unlike some of the posters replying to this. Although legally entitled to 50% due to your ex-parterners and your trust with regards to legal documentation you are doing the right thing to only stake a claim to what you have contributed to.

I do however think you should be looking at reclaiming less than 33% of the household items though because you have been contributing 33% less towards household bills whilst consuming 50%, so technically you owe your ex-partnet 17% of the household bills before you can take 33% of the household items.

Does that make sense?:beer:

MarkP80

Well done misskalwhite for having some morals unlike some of the posters replying to this. Although legally entitled to 50% due to your ex-parterners and your trust with regards to legal documentation you are doing the right thing to only stake a claim to what you have contributed to.

- I can't believe you have just written that. Are you perhaps a bitter divorcee? Financial contribution is only a small part of a person's overall contribution to household. misskalwhite is most certainly entitled to 50% of any equity there may be in the property (or liable for any negative equity), should she wish to pursue this. I suppose that were they married with children and she stayed at home you would suggest she was entitled to nothing?

Does that make sense?:beer:

- If you'd written it a hundred years ago it might have done to some people.

MarkP