House renovation being carried out without a co-owners consent/knowledge

lr1277

From what you have said, I don’t understand how the house is owned. Is it a joint tenancy or tenants in common? If either owner dies this will affect how the house is treated. If tenants in common, then a will needs to be written saying how her 50% share is handled.

tripled

freedo25 said:

AdrianC said:

freedo25 said:

...unless she want to just sign over the property to him.

How much equity did she have in the property at the time the relationship failed?

What's her problem with her ex extending his home?

She has 50% equity. 
Her problem is she wants her equity from the property as this has been going on for 10 years. 

It isn't "his" home, it's shared ownership. She wasn't informed about any works and her permission wasn't requested. One glaring issue is her liability as a co-owner. 

Does your partner have any children with the ex and have the children left the property?

This website offers some case law around forcing sales: https://www.samconveyancing.co.uk/news/conveyancing/can-i-force-the-sale-of-a-jointly-owned-property-6179

It appears that if there were no children involved at the time (or perhaps if those children are no longer in the property), then there is a reasonable chance of forcing a sale. That being said, the ex's new children might hamper matters, as courts are usually reluctant to do anything that could be of detriment to kids. Otherwise, the court may refuse a sale but stipulate that rent must be paid. This is based on market rent, so the increase in value from the extension could play to her advantage.

Ultimately, there is little your partner can legally do unless she is prepared to move back in (which doesn't seem like the best of ideas), or try mediation and if (when?) it fails, ultimately some form of legal action. Consulting a solicitor, who can discuss the options  available based on her specific circumstances, would be the best course of action.

SameOldRoundabout

Your only option is to force the sale. Can you borrow money? Find a solicitor who offers payment plans or can take their fees out of the sale? Otherwise she will remain tied to him and the house permanently. I’d also be wondering if fraud had occurred as he’s likely to have remortgaged in that time surely! Check the land registry deeds remain the same, call the mortgage provider and ask if they’re still providing it, Get A Solicitor. Remaining financially strapped to someone for so long is inexcusable. 

eddddy

freedo25 said:

 One glaring issue is her liability as a co-owner. 

What liability is that?

It sounds like the real issue is that she wants her share of the equity from the house.

The renovation isn't really relevant - so maybe it's better not to get stressed about that (In fact, it's probably increased the value of her 50%.)


I believe that she could apply to a court to try to force a sale.

canaldumidi

I believe if he refuses a sale meaning she has to resort to the courts, she can claim court/legal costs from him (if she's successful). Of course she'd have to find the money initially to get the case to court.

And even without that, surely the equity from a sale would more than cover the costs?

And even if it didn't fully cover the costs, still worthwhile just to have got the matter settled?

Earlier questions about ownership are important: 'shared ownership'? Joint Tenants/TIC? Is there a will?

freedo25

SameOldRoundabout said:

Your only option is to force the sale. Can you borrow money? Find a solicitor who offers payment plans or can take their fees out of the sale? Otherwise she will remain tied to him and the house permanently. I’d also be wondering if fraud had occurred as he’s likely to have remortgaged in that time surely! Check the land registry deeds remain the same, call the mortgage provider and ask if they’re still providing it, Get A Solicitor. Remaining financially strapped to someone for so long is inexcusable. 

The deeds remain the same. He wound up his company and took on an IVA a while ago. He then restarted a company putting his partner as 90% shareholder as a means of hiding from the CMS. He claims now to only earn £140 a week and his partner doesn't work. This is a fairly common practice for people hiding their earnings from the CMS. 

freedo25

This appears to be going off on various tangents...there are several years of issues relating this property that aren't really relevant to the matter as they stand just now.

The question at hand is how can this level of work be sanctioned without her knowledge or consent as a co-owner of the property? Is there anything she can do about it? We have a solicitor contacting us this afternoon. Obviously we are hoping an avenue may now be open to us which will may force him back into a negotiating position to allow her the freedom she deserves and to sever our financial ties to him. 

Section62

freedo25 said:

He has been under an IVA a few years ago and she has bent over backwards to try to get it resolved, he's simply refused to discuss it. Her immediate concern right now is how is this allowed to happen without her knowledge/consent?

How does his IVA deal with the equity in the house?

The BiB - given the state of the relationship and his occupancy of the house, it isn't clear what kind of consent/control was expected.  In terms of how it was "allowed to happen", if there is no court order preventing the ex improving the house then what would stop them doing so?

I'd suggest your partner needs to seek professional legal advice on how to resolve this issue.  The ex doing improvements is frankly a minor concern compared to some possible actions... for example neglecting the property so it becomes difficult/impossible to sell, and/or 'upgrading' the IVA to full bankruptcy.  The latter could really put a spanner in things, particularly in combination with the CMS charging order.  Legal action to work out who owns what will soon get very expensive with four (or more) competing parties involved.

Section62

freedo25 said:

This appears to be going off on various tangents...there are several years of issues relating this property that aren't really relevant to the matter as they stand just now.

All the issues over the years will be relevant, the tangents are necessary considerations.

freedo25 said:

Obviously we are hoping an avenue may now be open to us which will may force him back into a negotiating position to allow her the freedom she deserves and to sever our financial ties to him. 

As per my previous post just now, your partner needs very good professional advice before attempting to 'force' anything.

Him doing improvement work on the house really isn't that much of an issue from the legal angle.

csgohan4

There's no way round it now. Consider forcing a sale. It will be costly, but what other option will there be? Another 10 years of grief and stress. Get a financial clean break as well.

If the house has been rented both parties are liable for tax if applicable as well. 

Best to action things you can with your hands and not leave to chance