Separated & Husband wants to go Bankrupt

WelshSaver

Hi all I am hoping someone has some advice they can give me. I left my husband 3 months ago, I rented a new place with my younger son and I left him at our mortgaged house where my teenage son decided to stay.

The problem I have is my husband is telling me he no longer wants to live in the house and as we have a secured loan and debts he intends to go bankrupt. Until now I have carried on paying half towards the secured loan and debts. But he now wants to walk away. I am starting college in September to work towards qualifying as an accountant which I assume would not be possible if I became bankrupt.

I have signed a tenancy agreement for a year so cannot move back to the house. And he still intends to go bankrupt and tells me there is nothing i can do about it. I cannot afford to cover the cost of the house, my rent and all the debt, so I cannot offer to take it all on.

Does anyone know where I stand legally, as he wants to give the keys up and leave in the next few weeks. He won't put it on the market and sell it or rent it out. The mortgage is in joint names and the secured loan is in joint names.

Any advice would really be appreciated, thanks.

PippaGirl_2

What is the value of the house? What is the value of the mortgage and the secured loans ie what is the remaining equity?

Unfortunately if he decides to go BR then the OR will call upon at the very least any beneficial interest in the property is there is any. If the house was repossessed the secured debt would become unsecured debt and if your stbh went BR then the whole debt would become your sole responsibility. Depending on how much that would be, you would then need to decide what your best options are. A debt management plan at the milder end of the amount of debt, through to IVA/DRO or BR at the other end.

I'm not sure what the rules are with accountants and BR. Some things have changed over the years, previously anyone who had ever been BR could not be a school Governor or a local Councillor but now you can once discharged if you are not under a BRO/BRU. Worth checking.

The two good free advice organisations are

Consumer Credit Counselling Service - Website: CCCS Telephone: 0800 138 1111
National Debtline - Website: National Debtline Telephone: 0808 808 4000

Do give them a call.

eta also worth considering if your stbx is going to stop paying his share of the mortgage and joint loans and is handing the keys back, whether it is worth you continuing to pay anything if the inevitable is going to happen.

WelshSaver

Thanks PippaGirl The house is valued at approx £130000, The mortgage is approx £101000 and the secured loan is £15500. So could be £13500 equity. However, if he hands the keys back and the house is reposessed I suppose the bank could take a much lower amount and then any debt left would all be left for me to pay off.:(

The secured loan is with a different company to the mortgage company, so if the bank sold the house would they only be concerned with covering their £101,000?

We have a DMP for all our other unsecured debt, so I have been in touch with them today to arrange a new plan just based on anything in my name or joint names, as it looks as though I am going to be liable for the joint debt anyway so I might as well look at covering these payments now!

sniggings

I can't really add much but just to say it may be a good idea to not see your ex partner doing this to you but going BR as he may not have a better choice, If the two of you could not live in the house without debt and getting in trouble, he is unlikely to be able to do it himself.

Your signed rental agreement may be able to be broken without much cost, moving back in and maybe taking a lodger could work?

Or even deferring college until this is all sorted.

Not sure of the situation regarding BR being accounts, it may be allowed but you need to remember too that even if it is, an employer still may ask you have you been BR in the past and you would have to tell the truth, they may ask or not but I would think it would be a common question they do ask of accounts.

PippaGirl_2

The trouble with moving back into the house is, if the xh is going BR the OR will want to place a claim on the house so she may be forced out again and all the costs of moving twice in quick succession.

Judith_W

Is there nothing you can do to legally stop him going BR and force him to sell instead?

Also, would there be any possibility of OP servicing any outstanding debt rather than going BR too e.g lodger etc etc?

Sorry - only questions no answers

sniggings

PippaGirl wrote: »

The trouble with moving back into the house is, if the xh is going BR the OR will want to place a claim on the house so she may be forced out again and all the costs of moving twice in quick succession.

I was suggesting trying to stop the need for her xh going BR.

PippaGirl_2

sniggings wrote: »

I was suggesting trying to stop the need for her xh going BR.

The creditors of all the joint debt would probably need to put the debt in her name solely and they are unlikely to agree to that as they prefer to have two people to chase instead of one. She could get all the account numbers and pay 100% of all the joint debt herself (and how that would persuade her ex not to go BR) but would need to take advice as to whether that was feasable/achievable/going to succeed. And even then at the end of the day if the ex wanted to get new credit in the future with or without a new partner it is not going to be allowed while his name in on this debt so he may decide now or years in the future to go BR anyway putting the OP in the position of having paid 100% of the debt for the both of them for years and still losing the house or being forced into court.

sniggings

PippaGirl wrote: »

The creditors of all the joint debt would probably need to put the debt in her name solely and they are unlikely to agree to that as they prefer to have two people to chase instead of one. She could get all the account numbers and pay 100% of all the joint debt herself (and how that would persuade her ex not to go BR) but would need to take advice as to whether that was feasable/achievable/going to succeed. And even then at the end of the day if the ex wanted to get new credit in the future with or without a new partner it is not going to be allowed while his name in on this debt so he may decide now or years in the future to go BR anyway putting the OP in the position of having paid 100% of the debt for the both of them for years and still losing the house or being forced into court.

It was giving the OP another option, why withhold options when it might be the answer, sitting back and watching her ex-partner go BR will not be my choice if I could have done something about it.

There is no reason why the debts would have to be put just in the OPs name, it would be best but still workable if not, the ex-partner will most likely be glad they don't have to go BR if the OP is paying the bills, may not be an option but it's worth pointing out all possible choices.

WelshSaver

thanks for all the great replies.

I have thought about moving back in and trying to get around the rental contract, but my husband intends to go bankrupt anyway as there are also approx £30,000 worth of unsecured debt in his name which he cannot cope with. I say he cannot cope with, he can afford it as he has a lot more spare money than me each week, it's just he cannot deal with all the figures and wants to get rid.

If he still intends to go bankrupt then I couldn't take the mortgage over on my own as I only work part time so the house would still be included in the bankruptcy anyway, I assume.

sniggings

No all joint debts would pass to you, that is why it is best to try and get the max for the house when it is sold, if the bank does it then expect a lot of fees etc, you getting in there and trying to sell the house if the bank allows it will be the preferred option, as if you can't afford to take the house on now, when he goes BR you will need to go BR yourself anyway.

He can still go BR but without the house etc then the bills that pass to you will be a lot less so may stop you from having to go BR.