ex partners debt and application to register a restriction

amberlou_2

Hi
Than you in advance for taking the time to help.I have no debt as such so hope this is posted in the correct place.

I will try and keep as brief as possible.

In October 2001 my partner left me.I was left with 3 children and the mortgage .The lender for the mortgage would not let me take on the whole loan as I only worked part time so would not allow him to be removed from it.So we saw a solicitor and in the end we set up a tenants in common with a declaration of trust where the proceeds from the property would be split 95% to me and 5% to him.
This was all done in November 2001.
I have since paid the mortgage and everything for our 3 children as he would not pay maintenance,the CSA chased him for several years.
I then had a child with a new partner who moved into the house after selling his own and he paid approx £15,000 for an extension so we had enough room.Our son is now 13 years old.

My ex I know set up a business with his new partner which failed .
We have not heard from him for about 7 years.

Now yesterday in the post I receive a letter from the land registry to say that an application for a restriction has been made to be entered in the register as the applicant has a charging order made by the court.It seems to be to do with the TSB bank.They have also sent this letter addressed to my ex but to my address so I guess like me they can not find him.
It is telling me I have to reply to this to say if I object or consent.

I am now concerned about the following

Is my 95% of the property safe

Can I be made to sell to pay his debt

What about my partners claim on the property for the extension he paid for .

I would be grateful of any help but I guess I need to phone and book in with a solicitor in the morning.

fatbelly

Where a charging order is made on a sole debt but the property is jointly owned, this gets registered at the Land Registry as a restriction, not a full charge.

An application for an order for sale is still possible but it makes it even less likely that a court would grant it. The chances of it being successful in your situation are minuscule.

Would the value of the 5% even cover the debt?

Debt Camel gives some facts and figures here

http://debtcamel.co.uk/charging-order-sale/

amberlou_2

Thank you for your replies
I have no idea how much his debt is for and from asking around his family he seems to be in a lot of it and has not been seen for a long time.
The property is worth about 150k with a mortgage left of about 30k so his 5% at the moment would be about 6k.
I will phone the solicitor this morning and make an appointment .

FBaby

The restriction will be his and therefore, can only apply to his 5% of the property. They would not be able to force the sale of the property.

Saying that, why didn't you looked into your new partner to take on the mortgage with you and paying off your ex? I assume the low % agreed by your ex was on the basis that the equity value would go up, but did you agree a timescale by which you would sale the property? Adding an extension has meant yet more equity increase.

You would be much better off buying him out now with your new partner, but the restriction will make it more complicated.

amberlou_2

Thank you FBaby for your help
New partner was not in a position as self employed when we first started living together and to be honest it has never been a simple situation and is a lot more involved on the relationship side.Me and my new partner are still together but now live apart...this suits us both.

There was never any time scale and he just wanted rid of us to be honest.I don't mind that his share has gone up as I think it has always seemed a small price to pay for peace from him.

National_Debtline

Hi amberlou,


I think you are wise to get some legal advice in this situation and you definitely need to find out how much this debt is for. Unfortunately, this may not be a clean cut situation. The charge shouldn't go into your share of your equity, however, it may depend on how iron clad your documents are about the new equity division and whether the restriction is placed against the property or that persons share. You should still have notice of the charging order in your own right and that means you can file your own objections to try and make sure things are done properly, but you will certainly need legal advice.


I don't want to be all doom and gloom but another thing you need to bear in mind that if your ex has lots of other debts, this could happen again (and again). It may be worth getting more advice about your long term options to prevent more restrictions in the future. Good luck,


Laura
@natdebtline

amberlou_2

Hi National Debtline
I do have notice in my own right...one letter came addressed to me and another that looks the same (I have not opened it)addressed to him.
It is asking me to reply by 22nd July so not a lot of time really .
I have to object or consent
It says on the main important part that..

The TSB bank being the person with the benefit of an interim charging order on the beneficial interest of...his name here ...made by..court details here..

I have the letters I received from the solicitor in 2001 confirming that we had set up a tenants in common agreement in unequal shares and the split amounts of 5% and 95% it also states that he had been advised to seek independent legal advice which he had declined and I remember her asking him to sign to say he had been advised and declined.
She then said the agreement forms would be put with the deeds she would obtain from the building society.
I can see no reason why this would not all have been done correctly.

amberlou_2

Can anyone tell me how I find out when another court date may have been set for .As it seems I am able to raise my objections but have no idea how to do this.

Land_Registry

amberlou wrote: »

Can anyone tell me how I find out when another court date may have been set for .As it seems I am able to raise my objections but have no idea how to do this.

Contact the court using the details provided in the Notice - they may be able to help re another date being set for example

National_Debtline

Hello again Amberlou,


As the agent from Land Registry says, contact the court to check whether a hearing has been set at this stage (especially if your letter is unclear). To file your objections you would simply send a letter with your name, address, the case reference and details of what your objections are (enough information so the court can link your letter to the case).


Your objections could be that the property is in joint names but the debt is in his sole name and that a charging order may be potentially disproportionate action based on the debt level and his equity share (depending on what the debt level is).


So, if no hearing has currently been set you will need to file these objections within 28days of notice of the interim charging order. But if a hearing has already been set you will need to make sure your objections are in at least 7 days prior to the hearing to both the creditor and the court. I hope that helps, good luck,


Laura
@natdebtline

amberlou_2

Hi
Thank you for your help ...I now have more information.
On the notice from the land registry it has the name and phone number for the solicitors dealing with the claim for the TSB.I phoned and was put through to the person dealing with this case.She said she had sent all details in the post on 29th June.Told her these had not arrived and would give it a couple more days .This information has never turned up in the post so I doubt was ever sent!
In the mean time I had some advise from a lovely guy at national debt line but also from a solicitor at Nelson solicitors who said to ring back the solicitor and tell them to email the details straight away as I need the court date to keep with in the time frame.He said I could deal with this with out going to the expense of a solicitor and gave me some advise over the phone.
This has come through and the debt is for just over 11k and the court date is 25th July.
On the information the land registry sent it says the interim order was granted 30th May but on this information from the court it was granted 29th February?
They are applying for the following

Further information
The judgment creditor asks the court to take account of the following:
The judgment creditor asks that the form of registration be made as follows:
Pursuant to section 46(1) of the Land Registration Act 2002 and r. 19A of the Land Registration Rules 2003 the claimant seeks an order that the court direct the Chief Registrar at H.M. Land Registry to register the following restriction in Form P against Title Number NT42275: No disposition Of the registered estate by the proprietor Of the registered estate or the proprietor of any registered charge, not being a charge registered before the entry of this restriction, is to be registered without a written consent signed by an authorised officer Of TSB Bank Plc Of Henry Duncan House, 120 George Street, Edinburgh, EH2 4LH.

This makes it sound like I would have to ask them if I can sell the house...am I reading this correctly.

She also says in this letter I need to tell her in writing 7 days before the court date my objections nothing about me informing the court of these.

So should I tell the court and land registry and also looking at the situation as written in the opening of this thread what should my objections be and any points on how to voice/write these would be appreciated....I will also be attending the court .