Split from violent ex do i still need to pay half mortgage?

chunkymonkey2011

Hi
I had to leave the family home 3 yrs ago due to a violent ex partner,(hes been charged twice with common assault against me he would of gone to prison but i asked he got help for temper instead) we have no children together, but i had my teenage son living with me.We moved back in to my parents and i pay rent to them.
I have been trying to get my ex to sell the house so we can move on but he wont.He toldme 12 months ago his gf who had moved in with him was going to buy me out, but no joy with this her house still isnt on the market.Ive asked him to move out and we would rent to helppay mortgage, again he has refused.I had a buyer for the full price but he refused, said its not for sale!I paid my half of the mortgage for the first two yr, but stopped when his now fiancee moved in.They have two incomes coming in, i have one and pay rent i cant afford mortgage as well.Do i still have to find my half of the mortgage? there is a fair bit of equity, can he take the last 12 months of what i use to pay off the equity? if i have to pay the longer time goes on the less of the equity i will get through his fault would i still be entitled to half the equity giving the circumstances? i have tried and tried to get him to sell and have all the emails as proof that he is stalling?
He also paid small deposit,house is in joint tenants, if i go to court to ask for saleof house would he get this back,again looking at why i had to leave and he has been living in the home doing what he wants when he wants? im in a small bedroom cant do what i want as it is my parents home?

Please advise

Thanks

Chunky

holly_hobby

Hi,

Firstly I am so sorry for the circumstances under which you moved out of your home .... and I hope that you live a more peaceful existance now ..

Moving onto your problem....

Your mortgage if effected as joint tenants, means that all parties are jointly and severally (independently) liable for repayment of the mge.

So you could stop paying him your half, but if he inturns then stops paying the mge lender, you will be both be liable to all arrears - which if unpaid will eventually result in the respossesion of the property.

Of course, he may not be making all payments now, and if you have not told the lender of your residential circs (minus the personals of course), i.e you live elsewhere - they won't know to send any correspondence and copy mge statments to your alternative address.

So if you have not already told them, ring them tomorrow and let them know that although you are still pty & contribute to the mge, unfortunatly due to a relationship break down, you no longer reside at the address. Thereby, you require a copy of all correspondence issued in relation to the mge, to be sent to the address you now reside at.

In doing this, you will be kept abreast of any payment issues etc, before it ends up in court.

Now moving on to him - if he won't sell, move out, or won't/can't afford to buy you out, its the court route you shall have to go.

And you will need legal advice & representation to do this.

If its a jnt mge normally any equity left following sale & mge redemption, is split equally. To have the court vary this, your solicitor shall have to make representation, as to why you believe it should be apportioned in any other way.

Lots to digest I know ... but I hope this helps to get the ball rolling for you - and I of course wish you well .

Holly

chunkymonkey2011

Hi
Thanks for the reply, i have been tracking payments on credit expert and he has been making all the payments.
Do i have to still pay half the mortgage now he has 2 incomes coming in,i cant afford to pay mortgage and rent.I dont have access to the property as hes changed the locks.
The other thing was i stopped making payments after i found out for 5 months he lost job social security were making the payments but he failed to tell me that and i was still giving him my half.Hid gf had just moved in when i found out and he got new job the month after

holly_hobby

You could of course just stop ... and take any fallout ... inc repossession etc.

But I can only advise you what your legal obligations are ... and that is if the mge falls into arrears and possession, the lender will pursue both of you for payment.

Its really best advice that you get yourself off this mge asap - be it by his agreement (if he is earning enough & lender agrees) or by the courts order of sale, if the lender won't release you, or he won't consider having your name removed at all.

Good luck

Holly

dimbo61

His G/F should be paying RENT as she is living there so go see a solictor for advice and get the ball rolling

maninthestreet

Your ex. has far more to lose if you stop paying your half of the mortgage - if the property gets re-possessed due to arrears, he loses the roof over his head.

SAMMYE_2

Personally I would stop paying half the mortgage as he will not sell.

Your not living there and if your name is jointly on the mortgage that means the house will still be half yours regardless of how much you pay towards the mortgage.

Go and see a solicitor and with the money you are saving from not paying the mortgage and go from there.

A read about someone who was jointly on the mortgage of a property being entitled to half the property even though they had split up 20 years earlier and she had made no mortgage payments... might be worth keeping quiet and letting your nest egg grow!

AMILLIONDOLLARS

I would stop paying my half of the mortgage and take the fall-out, I would not be paying to keep a roof over his or his girlfriends head, see how quickly they rustle up the money to pay you out. Time to put your best bluffing hat on, sit tight and wait.

AMD

holly_hobby

As a joint mortgagor she ultimately remains legally liable for mge repayment.

If the property does go through a future possession order (whilst she remains party to the mge), both she and ex partner will have their CR record marked accordingly, and shall be unable to seek a mge/finance for some time, as having been previously the subject of a repossession order.

Further to which the lender may continue to pursue OP (& ex) for any shortfall realised on sale.

As prev advised to the OP (again not based on morally based arguments) - best and responsible advice, is that she needs to advise the lender of the current situation, and have herself legally removed from the mge liability asap - by mutual agreement with ex & the lender, or forced sale via the courts.

Holly

AMILLIONDOLLARS

He's moved the girlfriend in let see if he wants her to made homeless, he has got as much to lose as the other OP. All very well to say get yourself legally removed from the liability, but her ex doesn't sounds as if he wants her to be removed. She's paying to upkeep his lifestyle! lets see how lovey dovey he gets when she stops paying. A forced sale is the right steps, but in the meantime put the money in a savings account, until you need it.

AMD

holly_hobby

I completely agree that from a non-professional stand point, the current situation the OP finds herself in is unfair.

But as a mortgage/financial professional I must give advice from a legal point of view - and to alert the OP of her legal responsibilies as a joint mortgagor, and how those responsibilities impact on her. (which not is not quite the same, as to whether I personally think the current situation she finds herself in is actually fair ).

How the OP handles the matter is ultimately their decision, with the hope that the advice and opinion given by all, will assist her in resolving her current issue.

Hope this helps

Holly