Tenants in common - partners entitlement

tims84

Hi all,

My mum is buying a property along with my sister as tenants in common. They will each share a 50% share. My mum has said that in her will she will split her half with my brothers and I (though I don't necessarily want anything).

My sister has a long term partner who she will probably marry eventually. The question is, if they married and he were to become my sisters next of kin, would he be entitled to half her share if they were to divorce or anything was to happen to my sister? In which case he could force the sale of the property to claim the money?

Your comments would be appreciated?

T

00ec25

if they divorced then yes he would be entitled to half of the marital assets as the start point just the same as you would be if you divorced. How much he actually gets depends on what is agreed in the divorce and will be especially skewed if they have any children

as a part owner the only way to force a sale is to get a court order. This will typically cost a lot of money in legal fees

tims84

Thank you for confirming. I thought this was the case. I just don't want my parent's property to be put at risk by my sister becoming involved. My sister and her partner share a joint bank account so I also fear that he will claim that they are paying her part of the mortgage together. Perhaps I'm just being paranoid but I really don't trust the chap!

RAS

Even more scary; if mum dies how are you and brother going to get your 50% of the value of the property released?

00ec25 wrote: »

as a part owner the only way to force a sale is to get a court order. This will typically cost a lot of money in legal fees

Mojisola

00ec25 wrote: »

if they divorced then yes he would be entitled to half of the marital assets as the start point just the same as you would be if you divorced. How much he actually gets depends on what is agreed in the divorce and will be especially skewed if they have any children

as a part owner the only way to force a sale is to get a court order. This will typically cost a lot of money in legal fees

However, as a joint owner of the house, he would be entitled to have keys and come and go as he wished and/or live there.

Rather than spend a lot of money on a court case, he could just make life so difficult for your Mum and sister that they agree to selling so that he can have his money.

CLAPTON

tims84 wrote: »

Hi all,

My mum is buying a property along with my sister as tenants in common. They will each share a 50% share. My mum has said that in her will she will split her half with my brothers and I (though I don't necessarily want anything).

My sister has a long term partner who she will probably marry eventually. The question is, if they married and he were to become my sisters next of kin, would he be entitled to half her share if they were to divorce or anything was to happen to my sister? In which case he could force the sale of the property to claim the money?

Your comments would be appreciated?

T

if your mum dies then you and your brothers could force the sale of the house and make your sister homeless


if your mum dies and you yourself die then your spouse could force the sale of the property etc etc.

tims84

Thanks for your replies. I just think family buying property is a mistake. My mum has insisted she is going to include me in her will but for me it's not about the money. I'm not doing too badly for money and when my parents pass away I'll be too distraught to worry about what I'm going to inherit. What does bother me, however, is fairness and I don't want someone to gain unfairly from something that my parents have worked hard for. Anyway I guess I'm being pessimistic as this relies on my sister actually separating with her partner. Their relationship is very volatile though so is a definite possibility!

TBagpuss

it would be possible to set up a delcaration which set out when and i what circumstnaces a sale of the proeprty could be forced. If the turst deed explictely stated that your mother had a right to occupy the property during her life time (or at least until any point at which she had to go permanently into care) then that would protect her from the risk of being made homelss if your sister and her partner split up.

Your sister could also look into a pre-nuptial agreement if she does get married which, while it would not give her total protection, could limit any claims her husband could make.

obviously it is essential that everyone gets proper, independent legal advice at each stage.

tims84

TBagpuss wrote: »

it would be possible to set up a delcaration which set out when and i what circumstnaces a sale of the proeprty could be forced. If the turst deed explictely stated that your mother had a right to occupy the property during her life time (or at least until any point at which she had to go permanently into care) then that would protect her from the risk of being made homelss if your sister and her partner split up.

Your sister could also look into a pre-nuptial agreement if she does get married which, while it would not give her total protection, could limit any claims her husband could make.

obviously it is essential that everyone gets proper, independent legal advice at each stage.

Thank you for your comments. Would you suggest my mum and sister take advice from separate solicitors? So far they have met with one together to get the ball rolling

TBagpuss

yes. It's fine to speak to one initially but they each need to take separate, independent advice before they sign anything.