Do I need to buy the ex out of the mortgage?

John108

Hi,

I hope somebody can clear something up for me...

Myself and the ex wife bought a house nearly 8 years ago (Feb 2008). We put down approx £5000 deposit of which she paid £4000. We both earned approx £17000 pa so deal when we were together was that the mortgage would come out of her bank and i'd pay the bills etc to even things up. When we broke up (Aug 2010) the ex moved back to her mams and I lived in the house for a few months (Aug - Nov 2010), we both continued to pay our share of the mortgage and bills but the ex felt like she shouldnt have to pay for a house she wasnt living in so the house was put on the market and I moved back to my parents. We agreed to split the mortgage payment during this time to keep things equal.

Around Feb 2013 the house still hadnt sold and i'd got a better job so could afford to live in the house and pay for everything. The only thing the ex pays for is her part of the insurances. I have now been living in the house close to 3 years now (Feb 2013 - to date) paying everything and have spent quite a bit of money (£6000+) upgrading the house with the aim of selling it. The market in the area has picked up and it is likely I have around £10,000 equity in the property.

The way I see it is that from buying the house in Feb 2008 to Jan 2013 we paid everything equally but from Feb 2013 she has paid nothing and i have paid approx £21,000 (30 months mortgage @ £500pcm plus £6000 renovations).

So thats the background...can anyone tell me is the ex is entitled to anything?

ViolaLass

Morally, yes.

(Why should she be entitled to nothing just because you eventually took over all payments?)

booksurr

you say ex and you also so ex wife

if the latter is the actual case then stand by for a very expensive set of legal fees if you decide to cut her out as the start point for the divorce will be 50/50. The rest is down to whether her lawyers are better than yours

you would be very foolish to continue with your argument that she is entitled to nothing. She paid 80% of the deposit to start with and you are not yet divorced !

pinkshoes

Your wife put in £4k deposit,and you have spent £6k doing it up,yet there is only £10k of equity??? Something doesn't add up...

What you have paid in mortgage is irrelevant. You should have been paying "rent" of some sort that paid the mortgage, then any shortfall or excess was split between you and the ex.

You will need to start doing some calculations to work out what is fair.

KRB2725

I'm not a lawyer, but I would say that yes your ex wife is entitled to something.

getmore4less

Look at this this way.

You started out £3k down(deposit)

you paid 50:50 that was the agreement.

When you split and you became sole occupier she was still liable for the mortgage but you needed to pay her for the occumancy of her share.
Normaly these even out so occupier pays everything or you work out the detail.
(did you claim the single discount)

Aug 2010 starts to get a bit more complicated as she was paying things she should not have so her bit has gone up.

Then yuo both left for a while back to equal again.

then you moved back in as sole occupier say the rent /mortage cancel again.

Then there is the £6k investment. but the mrs had a £3k head start + some.


Unless you want to work out the detail 50:50 once sold would be a good starting point


You bought at peak in a lot of areas recovery back to those levels happened late last year or this year.

Leaving the place empty for two years probably should have rented it out and when she move out got a lodger if you could not afford the place.

Pixie5740

You say ex-wife so does that mean the divorce has been finalised? If so how was the house dealt with in the divorce?

TBagpuss

Yes, she will be entitled to something.

If you were living in the hosue for the past 3 years then you have had a significant benefit - genreally speaking mortgages are cheaper than comparable rented properties at present so you have has a good deal.

The £6K you have spent on renovations does not mean you get £6K back, the relevent issue would be what, if any, of that £6K increased the value of the property and by how much.

Any money you spent on thinks such as decoration or normal maintenace would not be taken into account, as that is part of owning a property, and you have had the benefit of it as you were living in the house. If you have spent money which has resulated in the value of the house increasing over and above any increase due to passive growth (house price rises) then there may be an argument that that should be taken into account to some extent in determining how much each of you is entitled to, but of course your wife will legitimately raise the higher deposit she paid.

If current equity is £10K, so even a 50% share is only £5K; you could very easily spentd that, or more, if you end up in court over this.

As you are / were married, you will also need to consider other financial assets in whatever settlement you come to, and will need to ensure that you confirm whatever agreement you reach by way of a formal court order, so that neither of you can make new claims against the other in the future.

bigfreddiel

If you haven't set in writing how much of the house both of you agreed was yours then your ex is entitled to half. That's what marriage is all about. Tough innit!

Cheers fj