Selling with a joint mortgage whilst ex resides in the property

Emmamarsh

Hi, I've a complicated query.
I separated from my ex two years ago. We have a joint mortgage. My youngest son was at college at the time so I said that I'd pay the mortgage until he left college, that was this July. He is 20 yrs old.
My ex does not work and has no income.
I need to sell now, I've met someone else and want to move forward with her however I'm currently paying over £1100 per month on my mortgage.
My ex will not respond to texts, phone calls and when I've gone over she has been out.
I'm worried about where I stand and how on earth I can move forward with this.
I'm happy for the property equity to be split, I just want to get it on the market.

-taff

Go and see a solicitor

steampowered

You can put the property on the market and invite estate agents round.

Once you have got a valuation and your ex knows he/she will get around £xxx from the sale, that might motivate them to co-operate a bit more.

However you won't be able to exchange contracts unless your ex signs on the dotted line, as your ex needs to approve the sale.

If you can't get your ex's approval, you would need a court order.

G_M

Married? Surely this should be (or should have been) dealt with as part of the divorce settlement.

FBaby

You need to prepare for a possible fight. You can put on the market, but what happens when she doesn't let the EA in, let alone prospective buyers?

You do have a right to access the house, but what if she changed the locks? You can change them again but.... well, it all gets very messy, so really, your best move is to continue to try to communicate with her. She is probably burying her head in the sand because she is scared of the future. She will need to face the reality, but the gentler you approach this, the more likely she will accept that she needs to take actions to support the sale.

Alternatively, you'll have to take her to court, and likely win if there are no more children residing in the house, but that would be costly, most likely for both of you for what will likely be an inevitable outcome, so she needs to realise that she has nothing to gain from ignoring the situation hoping it will go away.

enthusiasticsaver

It is still your property so you can sell it any time you want but your ex will need to vacate it. Are you actually divorced? Unfortunately to force the issue you may need to stop paying the mortgage if she will not cooperate but this will trash your credit record, lead to repossession and probably loss of equity depending on the LTV.

Ideally you would talk to her and get her agreement but to be honest a woman with a 20 year old son who does not work is probably concerned as to how she will survive. Has she never worked or is she between jobs?

xylophone

Are you in contact with your son? Does he still live with his mother?

Emmamarsh

We are not married

Emmamarsh

My ex and I are not married, my sons of 20,22 and 26 yrs of age are living there temporarily for now. We are joint mortgage holders but I've made all the payments since the split two years ago.

Emmamarsh

Xylophone, yes, I'm in contact with all three of my boys.

agrinnall

enthusiasticsaver wrote: »

It is still your property so you can sell it any time you want...

Not so, the sale cannot be completed unless the ex signs the paperwork, whether they are still in the property or not. If the ex refuses then the OP will have to obtain a court order to sell.