Forced to guarantee a mortgage

Aid121

Going through a divorce at the moment, my wife does not work and currently lives in the house with our 2 children. She has offered me 50% of the current equity in the house, to be paid when the kids are older and the house can be sold. She wants me to pay her maintenance and she will take over the mortgage.
All sounds fine (I’d give her the lot if I could cut free and start new live away from her).
However she wants me to stay a joint tenant & joint mortgage holder.
I don’t want this as I believe it will prevent me from buying (getting another mortgage) a new place for myself.
She tells me her solicitor said she will easily get more if we go to court and I should therefore sign up to the deal.
Can I be forced to guarantee her mortgage?
And even if I come of the mortgage would they not chase me if she defaulted if I was a joint tenant?
And as she is on benefits, and would receive around £500 a month from me in maintenance has she even got a realistic chance of getting a £138k mortgage?

Thanks in advance

LandyAndy

What advice has your solicitor given you?

bryanb

Surely if you remain party to the mortgage, you will be entitled to 50% of equity at date of sale rather than current equity? Could be up or down though. Yes they would chase you if necessary to get payment if you're on the mortgage.

Typhoon2000

Speak to your solicitor before you agree/ sign anything.

BitterAndTwisted

If you agree to be jointly liable for the mortgage payments you do indeed retain 50% of the equity at a later date but when will that later date be? Should your wife not keep up with her share of the mortgage payments you will be chased for the shortfall. This has been used as bargaining tool many times when communication between both parties fails.

If your wife acquires a mortgage and buys you out you gain your share of the equity in the property now but it has been known for the spouse with the children to be awarded more than 50% because they have the responsibility for proving the children with a roof over their heads and sometimes for a very long time but as she is on benefits she hasn't got a cat in hell's chance for the time being. £500 a month sounds like quite a lot of maintenance to me, is that compromising your ability to provide a roof over your own head?

Swings and roundabouts. Speak to your solicitor

Aid121

I'm Happy to Pay her £500 a month for the children, I earn aorund £42k gross (self employed). I don't mind buying her out or giving her a charge against the house etc, I just don't want to be tied to her i.e. no joint mortgage, so can they force me to keep the mortgage in my name? or some how by default make me guarentee the mortgage i.e. joint tentants

sem9999

The offer as described is not workable as it is unlikely she would ever get a mortage to buy you out. Do not sign to this deal.
In all honesty (even though this is probably not want you want to hear), there is only one way out of your situation: sell the property. Even if the judge decides in a less than 50% share of the proceeds against you.

Suggest you go to https://www.wikiforce.com and post on the forum there.

puddy

she wants to take over the mortgage but still have you on the mortgage?

does she not understand the concept of 'buying someone out'? you can be on and off the mortgage at the same time, its one or the other!

but in any case, she probably cant afford it, in which case you could try to buy her out? but a judge may order that the children need to stay in their family home. you cant do any of this really without seeing your own solicitor

Aid121

I understand the children need a home, I guess this is really the point can she the court etc force me to maintain the mortgage so that my wife and kids can remain living their.

If they can I guess for the next 12-14 years I'm renting a room.

Kinda means I can't move on, If I meet someone I can't buy a new place as I would already be stuck with buying her a house

sem9999

I do not think you can be "forced" to pay the mortgage. After all what if you lose your job and cannot afford to pay it?
I repeat if you want to be able to move on, you have few options. The only sensible one in my opinion is to sell and let the courts determine how much each party is entitled to. Anything else is just very messy and most likely will give you future stress.
Get some proper advice though.

wannabe_sybil

You can get an order through the courts to force sale (expensive).

You need to get proper advice for this, with an experienced family solicitor.

Also, your wife could not take over the mortgage without an income. That means that unless the house is sold the mortgage company will not let you take your name off the house, as then they would have no-one to chase if failure of payments for mortgage. Sometimes courts award the wife and children the right to stay in the matrimonial home, and if they do this then you are up the Ankh without a paddle if you want a mortgage for yourself unless your wife obtains employment and is able to take out a mortgage.

I also suggest you act quickly so that no-one gets too comfortable with current arrangements.

Good luck.