Underpayments on mortgage. Help!!

nevkimbers

Hi all,


New to this forum but would welcome any advice.


I'm in the unenviable position of being in the middle of a divorce & here is the position.


I am in the family home on my own.
My Ex now lives with her mother.
My ex no longer contributes to the mortgage (yet wants to benefit from the full equity available at settlement).
I cannot afford the monthly mortgage payments on my own, I have been doing this for 4 months and the situation is untenable.
I have the house ready to be marketed.
My ex is refusing to allow me to sell the home. (She doesn't want it and likewise cannot afford to keep it on her own).
She is refusing to allow a 2 month payment break with the lender to allow breathing space to get the house sold.


Basically she's trapped me in the house with the full knowledge it is causing me severe financial damage. She basically thinks I should borrow from my parents to pay the mortgage, and that I should also borrow from my parents in order for her to walk away with the lion's share of the equity we've built up in the house.


We've always been equal earners both in comparable salaries and contributions to the marital assets.


We have our FDA - first court hearing at the end of February at which I'm applying for a court order to sell.


The problem is, it can't be guaranteed she will be 'encouraged' by the judge to approve a payment break & I cannot go on paying the full mortgage any longer.


So that's the background, here's the question.


If I were to inform the bank I was only going to cover my half ( which incidentally would cover the interest), at what point would it technically be in arrears?


I'm also nervous about underpaying in case this prejudices my position with respect to the bank continuing to offer a payment break as ultimately that would be the ideal until the house is sold.


The bank knows about my divorce, however, we've never discussed anything about underpayments on the mortgage until such time that the house is sold.


Any advice would be much appreciated.

TrickyDicky101

There is no 'your half' - the mortgage debt is joint & several which means both you and your ex owe 100% of the debt.

If you make an underpayment then the mortgage goes into arrears immediately as you will not have made your contractually agreed payments.

It looks like you have no option but to default on the mortgage if borrowing from your parents is not an option and your ex refuses to contribute.

Make sure your solicitor is aware of your financial difficulties and the the steps you have taken to continue meeting your obligations. I would hope that in comparison it will not look good for your ex that she is trying to avoid her obligations.

GoingOn30

Can you get a short term lodger through a spare room website to help pay the mortgage until the court settles matters?

nevkimbers

Appreciate there is no concept of 'my half'. It's a case of, what I would normally contribute which happens to be half.


A lodger is out of the question as I have my daughter 5 nights out of every fortnight, there's no room and I don't particularly want someone else living in the house. Been there before, it never works well & you feel your house isn't your own.


I suppose my question should be more specific in that there's a difference between a missed payment and technically being in arrears which would should on your credit rating.


i.e. if you made up the shortfall before the month is out??


Considering all avenues at present. Even if it means underpaying, getting a letter form the bank, then forwarding on to the ex to try force the issue, then making up the payment before the next one is due.


1) Want to avoid impact to credit rating if at all possible.
2) Don't want to prejudice my position in respect of the bank offering a payment break.

MovingForwards

Underpaying / missing will affect your relationship with the mortgage company and will also affect your credit history.

Go see a lawyer about getting an order to force your ex to sell the house, won't be cheap but long term will be better and bring allow you to move on.