Advice please - seperation and joint mortgage

Twister9

Hi all

I realise questions like this have been posted a million times, but i wanted to get some advice about my specific situation, so here goes...

My ex-partner and i bought a house in 2007 at peak - £200k, we both put in £10k each as deposit so mortgage was £180k repayment, and we signed a 5 year fixed deal over 40 years.

In 2008 we split up, and I moved out, leaving my ex living in the house, and a lodger in the spare room paying almost my half of the mortgage with me topping up the difference each month.

The house prices plummetted! At the current time the house is worth approximately £170k (a house in our terrace sold for that recently) and the current mortgage stands at £176k. By the time our deal ends in 2012 the mortgage should be down to approx £171k.

What i would like advice on is whether, if my ex takes the house on by himself at the end of the term, would i have to pay him to get out, or as i put in the £10k deposit would i be entitled to get that less the costs and negative equity portion back (eg, my £10k less approx £1500 solicitors fees and negative equity payment, so my ex would have to give me £8.5k back to get the house in his name), and also as i have been getting no benefits from having the mortgage (and my ex has as he's been living in the house since 2007) am i entitled to claim back my half of the mortgage payments that have been made since 2008??

The other issue i've had is that, since i left in 2008, my ex has been doing "repairs" to the house without asking me in advance and then expecting me to pay for half - for instance, recently he said the soffits and facias needed replacing and he got them done for £700 so i owed him £350! As i didn't get the option of saying yes or no, do I HAVE to pay him that cost (or get it deducted from the house value at the end, as i don't have that money to give him!).

Thanks in advance for your advice!! I'm trying to figure out if i need to see a solicitor!!

geoffky

YOU are joking!!! a 40 year mortgage......well i am shocked that anyone would take one out.....retreats shaking my head..

Gwhiz

Solicitors will eat your money quicker than a house so if you can do ths amicably do not involve them.

If you cannot come to a financial agreement then you will need them.

At the end of the day you have a joint "asset" so makes sense to both be responsible for it until it is owned by just one of you. However, only you and your ex can work out whats fair and a way forward.

Been there myself and luckily we did everything very amicably. I feel for you.

pinkshoes

Twister9 wrote: »

What i would like advice on is whether, if my ex takes the house on by himself at the end of the term, would i have to pay him to get out, or as i put in the £10k deposit would i be entitled to get that less the costs and negative equity portion back (eg, my £10k less approx £1500 solicitors fees and negative equity payment, so my ex would have to give me £8.5k back to get the house in his name),

Your £10k is gone.

If your house is currently worth £170k, then if you give your ex £3k (plus half of any costs), he could "buy you out" and the house would become his.

The only snag with this is that to take the mortgage on in just his name, it would have too be no more than 4x his salary, and he'd also then need a 10% deposit, so £17k in cash...

In short, just sell the house NOW, get what you can for it, both take out an equal loan to cover the short fall, and walk away.

G_M

Apolgies for the more personal of the comments - just can't stop myself!

Twister9 wrote: »

Hi all

My ex-partner and i bought a house in 2007 at peak - £200k, we both put in £10k each as deposit so mortgage was £180k repayment, and we signed a 5 year fixed deal over 40 years. 40 years! Oh dear! Who advised you on this......?

In 2008 we split up, so soon? You bought together on a relationship that clearly wasn't well-founded....? and I moved out, leaving my ex living in the house,and you discussed the future.... NOT! and a lodger in the spare room paying almost my half of the mortgage with me topping up the difference each month.

The house prices plummetted! At the current time the house is worth approximately £170k (a house in our terrace sold for that recently) and the current mortgage stands at £176k. By the time our deal ends in 2012 the mortgage should be down to approx £171k.Do you know the cost of getting out of the deal early? If not, find out.

What i would like advice on is whether, if my ex takes the house on by himself at the end of the term, would i have to pay him to get out, or as i put in the £10k deposit would i be entitled to get that less the costs and negative equity portion back (eg, my £10k less approx £1500 solicitors fees and negative equity payment, so my ex would have to give me £8.5k back to get the house in his name), and also as i have been getting no benefits from having the mortgage (and my ex has as he's been living in the house since 2007) am i entitled to claim back my half of the mortgage payments that have been made since 2008??
No, and no - in my opinion, though as advised above, whatever you agree amicably together is what you should go with. Avoid lawyers fighting if you can.

The other issue i've had is that, since i left in 2008, my ex has been doing "repairs" to the house without asking me in advance and then expecting me to pay for half - for instance, recently he said the soffits and facias needed replacing and he got them done for £700 so i owed him £350! As i didn't get the option of saying yes or no, do I HAVE to pay him that cost (or get it deducted from the house value at the end, as i don't have that money to give him!).Well, on the one hand he is being responsible and maintaining the property in good condition. As you own 50%, this is in your interests. On the other hand, spending your money without telling you is a bit cheeky. Get him to understand that if the house needs money spending on it he should discuss it with you first, and give you the opportunity of looking at the various builder's quotes/deciding which to use, or even recommending your own builder.

Say at the time you do this in 2012 the property is still worth £170K.
So you each 'own' £85K.
Your mortgage is worth £171K = £85,500 each.

Assuming your partner is allowed by the Lender to take over the entire mortgage (depends on his salary etc - they may refuse!), you will 'owe' him £500.

It would be fair to split any legal/mortgage costs 50/50.

As for the £10,000 you put in, I'm afraid that is lost. Just as HIS original £10K is lost. The property value has dropped from £200K to £170K and you both lose out by this.

But that's just my view.

dorset_nurse

I agree with the above, you share the debt so you are just about on par. Get him to take on your half if he can or you will have to get him to sell.

Dav82w

Maybe you could ask your ex partner for a change of parties on the mortgage. You could have your name removed from the mortgage and deeds and walk away. Then your ex could find someone else to take on the mortgage with him, if he cant afford it on his own. Maybe his current tenant would be interested?! You wont get your money back but you'l have a fresh start.

themull1

pinkshoes wrote: »

Your £10k is gone.

If your house is currently worth £170k, then if you give your ex £3k (plus half of any costs), he could "buy you out" and the house would become his.

The only snag with this is that to take the mortgage on in just his name, it would have too be no more than 4x his salary, and he'd also then need a 10% deposit, so £17k in cash...

In short, just sell the house NOW, get what you can for it, both take out an equal loan to cover the short fall, and walk away.

You don't remortgage with a deposit, you do a transfer of equity if the lender decides the person remaining in the property can afford the payments, mine cost approx £550 through a solicitor, i re jigged the mortgage to a new term but kept the fixed rate that i had with my ex. You don't have to pay for anything your husband does to the house, thats his choice, but i would pay half the mortgage till equity has been sorted