House up for Sale Without Co-owner's Permission

banana_toast

A question good people if you have a moment.

Situation is this:

House jointly owned by husband and wife.
Husband currently unable to contact wife due to injunction.
Wife has signed up with estate agents and put the family home on the market at a price which is a bit on the low side.

Can she do this?

ETA - well, clearly she CAN do this because she's done it! What I meant was, can she legally do this - should the estate agents have asked for confirmation from her husband at the point the contract to sell was signed?

G_M

It's quite common for EAs to deal with just one partner, but when it comes to the legal process both owners will need to sign - so the poor buyer will suddenly find he's unable to purchase (having probobly paid for a survey, mortgage application etc).

Best advice would be for the husband to go in to the EA involved and make the position clear - and follow up the visit with a letter confirming his refusal to sell.

Emmzi

What's the problem? You don't want to sell at all, or not at that price?

Pick your battles. Sound like you would both be well rid of each other and if a few grand is required to make that happen, probably cheap at the price.

meg72

G_M wrote: »

It's quite common for EAs to deal with just one partner, but when it comes to the legal process both owners will need to sign - so the poor buyer will suddenly find he's unable to purchase (having probobly paid for a survey, mortgage application etc).

Best advice would be for the husband to go in to the EA involved and make the position clear - and follow up the visit with a letter confirming his refusal to sell.

I think thats probably the best advice you will get.

McKneff

Yes, if you dont go in and sort it, its hardly fair on the buyer, or viewers or even EA, they would all be wasting time and money

banana_toast

Thanks.

It's the price (too low, given it was valued higher only a couple of months ago) and the choice of agent - they are known as the local sharks in these 'ere parts.

SailorSam

I'm not sure about this but what is it where if you put an advert in a couple of papers saying this will be done if the other party doesn't come forward, after a certain length of time they can be presumed dead, so the sale could go ahead with just one signature.
Or am i getting things mixed up with something else ?

IanManc

Has the husband engaged a solicitor in relation to the case in which the injunction was taken out against him, or in any divorce that is ongoing?

If so, then the husband's solicitor will still be able to write to the wife's solicitor to point out that the property is jointly owned and that the wife has purported to market it when she doesn't have the consent of the co-owner. The husband's solicitor could also write to the estate agent in the same terms.

banana_toast

Yes the husband has a solicitor. We've only just found out about the sale this afternoon and, of course, the brief is not contactable!

pimento

The wife might find a buyer but without the husband's signature, she won't be able to sell. Assuming his name is also on the deeds.

zzzLazyDaisy

The wife can market the property, there is nothing unlawful or illegal about this and it is unlikely that the estate agents will be concerned or take any action even if the husband does go in and see them (both myself and my cousin were in a similar position at different times and in different parts of the country, so I speak from experience)

The other co-owner's agreement is needed to finalise the sale. He will have to sign the contracts assuming of course that his name is on the deeds. However if he refuses to sign the wife can ask the court to intervene, and if there is a divorce in progress this is likely to happen and the husband is likely to be ordered to bear the cost. Why? Because the purpose of the joint ownership (to provide a home for the co-owners) no longer exists. Property prices are still falling in many parts of the country and it is unreasonable to expect one co-owner to carry on living in and maintaining the property and/or paying a mortgage which is the responsibility of both (if that is what is happening).

The alternative of course is for the husband to buy the wife out and go and live in the property himself until he can sell it at a price that he is happy with.