Lifetime mortgage.

Jimbob1963

If my partner of 15 years has taken out a lifetime mortgage on our property. What happens if she dies. Will I have to sell the house to pay off the debt. The house is mortgage free. And in her name solely. 

HappyHarry

A lifetime mortgage is a mortgage.

 In the event of your partners death, the mortgage will need to be repaid. This would usually be from your partners estate, which might mean selling the property. If you have sufficient of your own funds at that time, then you can pay the mortgage off.

MWT

Jimbob1963 said:

If my partner of 15 years has taken out a lifetime mortgage on our property. What happens if she dies. Will I have to sell the house to pay off the debt. The house is mortgage free. And in her name solely. 

It is of course not 'mortgage free' and if the mortgage and the property are in her name only then the mortgage will need to be repaid, typically within 6-9 months of her demise or entry into long-term care.

If you were living in the property when the mortgage was first taken then you would have signed a waiver of your right to reside at that time. If you moved in at some point after this then she should have sought the approval of her lender before you moved in and failure to do so would usually be a breach of the terms of the mortgage.

Ultimately though the mortgage would have to be paid off and and depending upon the disposition of her estate as per her will, that may well mean selling the property. 

You used the term 'our property'... do you have any basis for believing you have any ownership rights regarding the property?

 

Jimbob1963

The house is in her name. The only rights I have are the fact I have lived in the house. And been married since before the mortgage was taken out. I'm guessing the house will still have to be sold if the estate can't cover the repayment of the loan though.

Jimbob1963

I guess I better start saving then. !!     I'd hate to be older. And have to sell and move out of a home I'd put 20 plus years work into.  !!
Thank you for the advice/ guidance...

MWT

Jimbob1963 said:

The house is in her name. The only rights I have are the fact I have lived in the house. And been married since before the mortgage was taken out. I'm guessing the house will still have to be sold if the estate can't cover the repayment of the loan though.

The way that a lifetime Mortgage is structured is designed to ensure that nobody other than the parties named on the mortgage gains any right to remain in the property, so once the parties to the mortgage have died or have entered long term care there would be no obstruction to a prompt sale.

If you have not signed a waiver of your rights then it suggests your partner has not followed the terms of the mortgage, so it would be wise to make sure that aspect is properly sorted out as well.