Selling home when child reaches 18 after divorce

duchy

TBH it sounds like the OP hasn't even approached the ex to discuss the situation reasonably and is assuming how they are going to react.

moomoomama27

Such vitriol towards the OP, of course he's a man so must be looking to shirk his responsibilities!!??? Come on, he came looking for advice, lets not resort to playground tactics! It's embarrassing to read........................

OP you need to look at the terms of the divorce and get advice. Sometimes it states when the 'child' reaches 18, other times it can be up until they turn 19! I would start proceedings asap. Presumably the ex will get a share of the house sale so will be able to rent or get a mortgage in her own name? I don't see why the male should be forced to give up his rights to equal share of a property?

DUTR

duchy wrote: »

TBH it sounds like the OP hasn't even approached the ex to discuss the situation reasonably and is assuming how they are going to react.

I think to be fair, he mentioned that his ex hates him so, the discussion is already set to be defensive and unco-opretavie from his ex.
After all as intelligent as his ex is, it's something she should be thinking about since the divorce.

January20

Jagraf wrote: »

I could be wrong but I believe the if you are 18 and on benefits, no maintenance needs to be paid. It's if they are in full time education that maintenance still needs paying. Could be wrong though.

No, of course not! the non resident parent wouldn't pay maintenance if the offspring was on benefit. However, it seems many people on this thread are arguing that the OP shouldn't not seek a sale of the house as this would put the child in the street, hence my comment about scrounging from their father, since if they had a job they could feed and house themselves, couldn't they?

Jojo_the_Tightfisted

Homeownertobe wrote: »

He could always get a job? Why should the OP have to give up what he's paid for to keep this lazy pair?

A working 18 year old will find it extremely difficult to get somewhere to live, as even house shares require them to pass credit checks - hard when they don't have a good credit rating due to not being old enough to have built one up. One who is unemployed will find it almost impossible.

It's not about the OP being male.

peachyprice

Jojo_the_Tightfisted wrote: »

A working 18 year old will find it extremely difficult to get somewhere to live, as even house shares require them to pass credit checks - hard when they don't have a good credit rating due to not being old enough to have built one up. One who is unemployed will find it almost impossible.

It's not about the OP being male.

The 18yo doesn't need to find a place to live, his mother need to find them both somewhere to live, something she's been aware of needing to do since the divorce.

It's hardly some big surprise that's been sprung on her.

Homeownertobe

Jojo_the_Tightfisted wrote: »

A working 18 year old will find it extremely difficult to get somewhere to live, as even house shares require them to pass credit checks - hard when they don't have a good credit rating due to not being old enough to have built one up. One who is unemployed will find it almost impossible.

It's not about the OP being male.

If only there were two of them and maybe perhaps a close family member, who's had a lot of notice to sort something out?

Jagraf

peachyprice wrote: »

The 18yo doesn't need to find a place to live, his mother need to find them both somewhere to live, something she's been aware of needing to do since the divorce.

It's hardly some big surprise that's been sprung on her.

The mother does not need to find the child anywhere to live either, he's an adult, as its been pointed out.

[Deleted User]

Whilst it's difficult to know the OPs circumstances it's also difficult to tell the ex's circumstances. No one on here knows if she is difficult or not - we only have the OP's word that she is and there may be a reason why she's difficult with the OP. Whilst this is understandable it isn't the point.

I understand totally that the OP wants to sell and in his shoes I'd want the same thing i.e. to move on and have the ties cut.

On the other hand most single parents in her situation don't have the resources to 'move on'. And parents of teenagers these days aren't able to get them to move out - where do they live, how do they afford rent and deposits even if they are working. The fact is she is still supporting the child even with his benefits and his father probably isn't.

The answer to the question is that he can force sale because that is the court's ruling but it may take a while if she digs her heels in, or it may not sell in the current market. Or he may be pleasantly surprised.

My opinion for what's it's worth is that the courts don't really take into account what happens to a woman and the offspring once that magic age is reached. After all her usefulness is over and she probably hasn't had the money over the years to 'prepare' for this either.