Legal Options for girlfriend moving in with me

GSXRCarlos

Hi guys, just after some general advise on my position if my gf moves in with me.

Situation at the minute:

I bought my house a couple of years ago, spent money and time (a lot of time!!!) getting it right and i pay all of the bills mortgage etc myself.

GF currently rents a place but is staying with me a lot (my place is bigger)

We've been together for less than a year and i want to check my position so i can protect my assets and investment until such time as we're ready to share/commit to the house together.

What can i put in place to make sure that she has no claim on the house, deposit i put down or the equity increases i may have generated?

I believe she can be classed as a lodger???

Thanks

BitterAndTwisted

The easy way to protect your assets is to not accept a single penny from her which could later be construed as rent/paying towards your mortgage. Half of the utility bills: fine. Half of the Council Tax: fine. Half of the grocery-shopping: fine. Nothing else. Nothing towards repairs/maintenance/improvements whatsoever.

bristol_pilot

She definitely cannot be classed as a lodger! If you try that, she may end up walking away with half your house. This may include throwing you out of it and/or forcing a sale.

The only way is not to accept a single penny from her. Not even for council tax, groceries etc (because in practice it will be impossible to prove that the £10 she gave you two years previosly was spent on spuds instead of going towards the mortgage).

As well as not accepting a penny from her, you also need a legal agreement drawn up by a solicitor stating that she has no interest in the property. There are a few cases of people being deemed to have contributed to a house just by living it. You need TWO solicitors - one for you and one for her. Otherwise she could claim later that she did not receive proper advice or was forced into it.

Who says romance is dead.

GSXRCarlos

I was hoping for better information than this

Romance isn't dead, but surely at these harsh times i need to think about myself financially, especially if she has no money behind her?

BitterAndTwisted

I stand by the information I gave you. Don't think it's any good? Then see a solicitor

poppasmurf_bewdley

GSXRCarlos wrote: »

I was hoping for better information than this

Romance isn't dead, but surely at these harsh times i need to think about myself financially, especially if she has no money behind her?

Too right you do.

The best advice I can offer is go see your solicitor. You cannot take chances with the biggest investment of your life.

And if your girlfriend doesn't like it, then it would sort of indicate what she was really after, wouldn't it.

quantic

Its not like in the movies, a court is not going to award her half from any sale of the property in the future, even if she is contributing, she may receive something for her contributions but they will likely represent any contributions made, e.g. if she moved in for a year and paid £100 a month, the court is hardly going to award her half of the equity in the property are they? If your seriously worried I would speak to a solicitor.

thegirlintheattic

It's true. Unless you draw up a legal agreement she can always try to claim that that £50 that she gave you for the ASDA shop was actually for the mortgage. Perhaps you shouldn't let her move in until you are ready to be in a long-term committed relationship.

mr_fishbulb

thegirlintheattic wrote: »

Perhaps you shouldn't let her move in until you are ready to be in a long-term committed relationship.

You can be committed to one but at the same time be practical about the fact that some of the time even the longest-term relationship break down.

sonastin

If it got to court, the courts would consider your respective contributions, but these need not be financial. If she gave up work to come and live with you and play the 1950s housewife taking care of you, her "lost" earnings would be taken into account. If she redecorated the place, the fact that you didn't have to pay a decorator would be taken into account. And at the end of the day, if it got to court you both stand to lose an awful lot more to lawyers and court fees than you ever would by coming to an agreement.

In the end, if she does contribute to your life and home over the time that you are together, would it be such a bad thing to pay her back some of that contribution if things go sour? It will be healthier for your relationship if you don't just insist on the right to throw her out on the street without warning at any time.

You should have a think about what sort of arrangement would be acceptable to you both and then get a solicitor to draft an agreement for you both to sign. While it isn't necessarily a binding document, if it did end up in court, a signed agreement is a powerful indication of your mutual intentions at this point. It would take a massive change in circumstances to persuade the judge to enforce something other than what you both agreed. And if you encounter a massive change in circumstances, that would be the time to have a re-think and re-draft of the agreement again.

thegirlintheattic

mr_fishbulb wrote: »

You can be committed to one but at the same time be practical about the fact that some of the time even the longest-term relationship break down.

I refer to the OPs "i want to check my position so i can protect my assets and investment until such time as we're ready to share/commit to the house together."

Which implies that he would have no issue in the future with her having a claim to the house but not at the moment.

I'm not saying there is anything wrong with protecting your assets but from the OPs attitude he doesn't want advice that if he doesn't want her to have a claim then he needs not to take money off her but instead wants both, even referring to her a lodger, doesn't sound like protecting yourself in a long term relationship really does it.

Also OP from re-reading your post it sounds like your gf does not live with you just spends nights with you sometimes. In this case what is the issue. She would only have a claim if she lived with you.