Do i need a deed of trust when partner moves in

mroot84

Hi all, thanks for reading this post. My partner will soon be moving from his shared rented house in to my house which I have owned alone (under mortgage) for 1year 11months. We have discussed all of the financials and agreed that he will pay 1/2 of all bills including the mortgage, since the total figure comes in at less than what he currently pays in rent. Despite this we have agreed that he will not go on the mortgage for various reasons including some minor level credit issues on his side that mean he has a poor history. My mum gifted the house deposit and has requested that i have something drawn up legally to show that my partner has no claim on the house should things go wrong between us, god forbid, again my lovely bf has agreed that this is the right way to go.

I would like to know what I should be requesting from a solicitor - would this be a deed of trust, a formal tenancy agreement (I hate the idea of officially being landlord to my partner!!) or something else? What sort of costs would be involved in getting this sorted?

Thank you for your help.

StuC75

Have his rent and board money paid into a separate account from which the mortgage is paid.

this is never a problem when 'moving in together' its how things can be trusted when goes sour.. Although could question if paying half is appropriate..

Will this extend to property maintenance? I would question paying half of repairs \ improvements since not gaining longer term..

While this is ok in the shorter term - what would happen years down the line? say 15/20 years of married life & kids,, would he assume ownership anytime??..

Especially when the time you have lived together outstrips how long you have owned the property on your own? and say having paid more to bills when raising children his contribution would have been greater than yours or whatever deposit your Mother had put to the purchase..

Obviously then getting married would override much of this...

Let_Us_See

Plan for your lovely BF to turn into the devil incarnate and protect your financial assets accordingly. Just read some of the posts on this forum and the problems that occur without forward thinking planning.

DigForVictory

+1 for talk to a solicitor, as while LetUsSee's advice sounds both entirely reasonable & slightly horrific, a sol may be able to draft something that covers the demonic posession aspect whilst leaving both of you the ability to look each other in the eye for decades.

I wouldn't invalidate it *all* on matrimony, either... Just see your sol again, to update your Will & whatever else may be advisable?
(Optimist Wearing her raincoat here. Less likely to put it down & forget it)

mroot84

Just to clarify he won't be paying 1/2 for repairs and maintenance, this will come from my own savings as you're right it would not be fair. His contribution will cover half of things like water, electricity, tv license and other utilities, all the things he is currently jointly responsible for as a tenant elsewhere, plus something towards the mortgage. Yet it is still around £70 lower than what he pays for his current property.

My question is how do i protect what I have invested, is a tenancy the best way, or a deed of trust? Or is there something else that will cover it?

What happens in the future - marriage, joint mortgage etc is something we are both keen for but not right now!

AndyGuil

The lender will need to know he is there as he is over 18 and living there.

TBagpuss

Speak to a solicitor - A deed of trust would be appropriate if the intention is that he will gain an interest in the property based on is mortgage contributions (i.e.if you are safeguarding what you've got now, but happy for him to start to build up a share by contributing)

Alternatively, a cohabitation agreement can set out the terms on which you are living together, and can specifically state that contributions will *not* give rise to any interest in the property.

be aware that any kind of agreement will need to be reviewed and updated periodically and that you would need to revise it in the event of any changes in circumstances (particularly if you get engaged or married, or if your respective financial contributions change significantly)

mroot84

Thank you TBagpuss that answers my question perfectly.

holly_hobby

mroot84 wrote: »

His contribution will cover half of things like water, electricity, tv license and other utilities, all the things he is currently jointly responsible for as a tenant elsewhere, plus something towards the mortgage.

Don't have ANY of his contribution fund ANY part of the mortgage or property upkeep - and keep clear evidence and records of this (I would have his payment paid into a separate account, and then you can simply tsf into your own bill payment account the amount reqd to meet the utilies - which clearly doesn't cover any part of the mge).

As if he can prove any contrbiution to the house and its upkeep, he may pursue an equittible ownership claim .... so be warned !

Now of course, I hope everything is rosy, but has others have said, things can go wrong, and often when there's money to be had (especially where triggered by any resentment or bitterness), things can become very ugly very rapidly ....

Just protect yourself and your asset is all we're asking you to do - with some very good advice already provided x

Hope this helps

Holly xx