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Advice for sister-in-law regarding house/divorce please.....
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From his side, she hasn't contributed financially, had a shortish marriage and is now after, "half".
I'm sure there's a reasonable compromise in the middle somewhere0 -
No-one has said that she's after "half". She's been offered £15k in cash and a reduced rent in the first property. That reduced rent scenario sounds like a nightmare in the making. I wouldn't agree to that. The right figure is somewhere between £15k and one of the houses, perhaps even a share of his business as well if he's been relying on her to raise his kids and work in the business at the same time.
Even if someone hasn't been earning a wage, that someone has possibly put their own career on hold to share the raising of someone else's children, so that does not mean that the wife hs not contributed financially. Ive heard that child-care costs can be extremely high, quite possibly the equivalent of a decent salary for three of them.0 -
poppysarah wrote: »She should seek advice.
But 15k and walking away completely from this person is probably the sanest move she could make.
The kids will presumably miss her and may want to stay in touch, but he sounds like a PITA and she is best rid of him as quickly and easily as possible.
Amen.
Having said that - legal advice - see whether he will improve his offer and then walk away.They deem him their worst enemy who tells them the truth. -- Plato0 -
I've got a devious and underhand head on this afternoon and it doesn't always think rationally but...
If she moved into his house and started paying him "rent" without any of this recorded in a formal agreement, could that then become her financial contribution prior to them getting divorced. Which could give her a stronger position when it comes to arguing about the divorce (denying all knowledge that this separation was meant to be permanent - you know playing the "I thought it was just some temporary breathing space" card)?
Still think a solicitors advice is the best answer though...0 -
Thanks for all your replies guys - I really appreciate your help and will pass all the advice on to my SIL. She has confirmed that she intends to see her solicitor next week before she makes any hasty decisions and hopefully she will take your comments on board
She is definitely not 'after half' of his money/assets, in fact it was only my DH who told her she should try to hold out for something which reflected the amount of effort and time she has put into the relationship. She would happily settle for £15k but we feel she deserves more than this.
Regarding the kids - yes they have admitted that they will miss her terribly.....in fact the eldest has expressed a desire to go to live with my SIL when she does move out of the marital home because she has realised what a total PITA her dad is. He has previously tried to poison the kids' minds against their natural mum and till recently they had believed his lies, but now they are older they are gradually understanding his mind games and are seeing more of their mum...........
Thanks again for all your advice xxxMortgage-free for fourteen years!
Over £40,000 mis-sold PPI reclaimed0 -
phoebe1989seb wrote: »Regarding the kids - yes they have admitted that they will miss her terribly.....in fact the eldest has expressed a desire to go to live with my SIL when she does move out of the marital home because she has realised what a total PITA her dad is. He has previously tried to poison the kids' minds against their natural mum and till recently they had believed his lies, but now they are older they are gradually understanding his mind games and are seeing more of their mum...........
Maybe having a decent step-mum has also helped them to compare the parenting skills of all three parents?If you've have not made a mistake, you've made nothing0 -
phoebe
A few other really important points.
Most particularly with respect to the benefits system because unless SIL finds a well paid FT job after 5 years out of the job market, she will be learning about it soon. She needs to look at www.turn2us.org.uk. As a single adult with no children the base line is income based JSA plus CTB and LHA. Unless she works more than 30 hours, WTC is not an option.
1. I suspect that he knows that if she gets more than £16K then she cannot claim benefits
2. As a single adult (or an adult with one child), she is entitled to a one room (or two room) property with a rental value in line with the Local Housing Allowance. She cannot get more than that and it is set at the 30 percentile level, so only less nice properties in less nice areas are likely to come within the limits.
3. If she moves into the other house at a reduced rent, she probably will not be able to claim LHA as it would be viewed as a contrived tenancy. That means she has to pay the rent from her lump sum. If it is a proper tenancy, that ties her to paying him until the tenancy agreement ends even if she moves out.He may not know what he is doing but that house would be a mill-stone round her neck.
4. If the 15 year old does move out with her, the child needs to understand what sort of housing she faces and to understand that she cannot change her mind at will. If SIL takes on a two room house and SD gets fed up and moves back with dad (or to her birth mum), that seriously affect SIL benefit entitlements.
5. With the 15 year old in the house she can claim CB, WTC if she works more than 16 hours, increased LHA and ChilD Support from ex. The CS does not affect benefit entitlements.If you've have not made a mistake, you've made nothing0
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