Girlfriend moving in

Drodough

Um...I would say I would be more likely to give you sound advice than the CAB . hehe.

However I agree with other posters- get some appropriate legal advice to satisfy yourself.

My now ex partner had a house with his ex (if you can get your head around that!) and she was on the mortgage and the deeds but had paid nothing in. We sort legal advice. Settled the matter without courts, but went into the whole thing in great detail.

Others please chip in if I am wrong, but in England there is no such thing as so-called 'common law' marriage. Therefore, your girlfriend has no more claim on your house than, say, a lodger or a friend. Now, marry her, and she would be in a position to claim. Ditto if you put her on the deeds.

That's my knowledge, as I understand things, and as others have said you should check with a legal expert, which I am not (I should really have said that to you before - as it's true we are often satisfied by an answer if it's 'what we want to hear').

Drodough

clutton wrote: »

if DD comes back and says he is a divorce solicitor i would be MOST pleased !!!

I wish I was but unfortunately just speaking from past experience with a similar issue.

Incidentally, I am a 'she'

Drodough

OK, from a google search (as I began to worry I may have given incorrect info after what others have said!) your girlfriend, could, techinically, try and claim a share of your property by arguing there was "a common intention" to share your property. She would have to either prove a verbal or written agreement took place to this effect, show she made a contribution to the purchase price of the property, or show that she contributed to mortgage payments etc due to an 'understanding' of this nature (ie, that you would be sharing the property value). So, yes, very good that others propted you to ignore me:rotfl: . Lol. Now, remember her proving an intention to share would not be easy, esp as she will be living with you for such a short time, however in light of this info, you may be wise to look into formalising the arrangement in some way if you are at all concerned? But at the least you should clarify the legal position with a professional lawyer rather than a professional googler such as myself.

I guess this is the problem with comparing experiences-plus my experience was some time ago and I would imagine with more people now cohabiting there have been more legal challenges by those cohabiting etc.

Anyway, hope that helps- clearly the answer is to go see a solicitor, as others have suggested.

Thrugelmir

Consult a solicitor. This may help.

Home ownership



If you move in with someone and the house is only in their name, usually you have no right to the proceeds from selling the house. This applies unless you can prove:

• you have contributed to the deposit for the house or the mortgage payments; or
• you have made a financial commitment (for example, paying for major work on the house) because it was agreed you would own a share of the house.

If the house is not in your name you may have no right to continue to live there if your partner asks you to leave. Also, if the house is not in both your names, you have no right to inherit the house if your partner dies unless they have put this in their will. If they do not leave a will, you may need to make a claim against your partner’s estate through the court. You will only be able to do this if you have been living together for two years or more, or you were being supported financially by your partner.

Ulfar

If the your partner makes a financial contribution towards the house and this includes bills and she can prove it then yes she can be awarded a stake in the equity.

This is a legal minefield and as others have said consult a solicitor.

There are other options can you not move in with her to a rented place and rent yours out.

Drodough

Ulfar wrote: »

If the your partner makes a financial contribution towards the house and this includes bills and she can prove it then yes she can be awarded a stake in the equity.

This is a legal minefield and as others have said consult a solicitor.

There are other options can you not move in with her to a rented place and rent yours out.

Makes perfect sense, however, if I had been with a partner 4.5years and they wanted to move to a rented property and not let me move in to their home to avoid me potentially trying to rip them off, I would be quite hurt and offended!! Guess only you know how your girlfriend would feel about something like that though.

clutton_2

relationships ?? dontcha just lurve 'em !!

whittboy

Wow, this is all a lot more complicated than I thought it was going to be, I think I may have to get some legal advice.

I asked her opinion before I bought the house as I did intend on her moving in when I bought it, but always with the intention that I would be the sole owner of the property until if/when we get married so renting this place out to rent somewhere else seems to miss the point a bit, also, as somebody mentioned, I'm not really sure how she'd take that.

It seems then that what I really need to clairfy is if the monthly fee she pays to me is her share of the mortgage or simply rent, because if it is mortgage then she could have a claim on some of the house,

Anyway thanks for the input.

boliston

I'd probably play it safe an have a lodger's agreement that specifies a set weekly rent. What you need to avoid at ALL costs is any sort of HINT that she is contribution towards your mortgage! The fact that she is not "on the mortgage" is irrelevant as there could be a potential claim if she makes a payment that could be construed as contribution towards your mortgage, so make sure ANY income from her is rent, and rent alone. Other bills such as broadband, electric, gas etc can be shared in the same way as a typical flatshare, but you are probably best keeping any utility bills in your SOLE name, apart from council tax which legally has to be both tenant's names.

Fire_Fox

Going halves seems to me that it would make it obvious your girlfriend will be contributing to the mortgage, rather than look at your outgoings why not look at rental prices for a large room in a shared house locally?