If i own less than a quarter of a house with an ex partner should i pay half the of the bills?

Doosht

Long story short: Myself and my ex partner own a house that we originally purchased to rent-out, or 'do up' and sell. It wasn't the home we lived in, it was separate to that. I'd always paid 50% of the council tax and all bills even though i only own 25% of the house (ex owns 75%, obviously). I did this because generally i'm a 'bit soft' like that, even though only 25% of any profit/proceeds would have been mine. 

Now, moving forward, i am in a new relationship, and so is she. I feel that i should only be paying the 25% until it is eventually sold. In the eyes of the law, would the council hold me to 50% of the council tax even though i only own a quarter if she refuses to pay her 75%?

I hope that makes sense!

DullGreyGuy

The council will hold you to 100%, you are jointly and severally liable for council tax and they won't care what relationship you have with the joint owner. 

As to what's "fair", thats up to you and your ex to come to an agreement on and ideally would have been sorted out before considering buying a property 

Doosht

Thanks. Both of our names are on the council tax. Could i still be liable for 100%?

And if me and my ex-partner reached an impasse, no council tax was paid, and it went to court; would a court disregard who owns what percentage of the house?

RAS

A joint and several liability means that the Council can successfully chase either of you for the whole 100% of the debt. Sadly, happens quite frequently with break-ups. And it's one of the few debts that goes to bailiffs.

Doosht

Okay, understood. Thank you.

DullGreyGuy

Doosht said:

Thanks. Both of our names are on the council tax. Could i still be liable for 100%?

And if me and my ex-partner reached an impasse, no council tax was paid, and it went to court; would a court disregard who owns what percentage of the house?

Yes, you are both on the line for 100% but the council cannot recover over 100% from the combination of the two of you. 

The council has the choice of litigating against one of you or both of you. If they chose just the one of you then the court would hold you fully liable. If it's the two of you they may decide to apportion it between you but their motivation will be ensuring the council gets paid not whatever percentage ownership you have. 

Doosht

DullGreyGuy said:

Doosht said:

Thanks. Both of our names are on the council tax. Could i still be liable for 100%?

And if me and my ex-partner reached an impasse, no council tax was paid, and it went to court; would a court disregard who owns what percentage of the house?

Yes, you are both on the line for 100% but the council cannot recover over 100% from the combination of the two of you. 

The council has the choice of litigating against one of you or both of you. If they chose just the one of you then the court would hold you fully liable. If it's the two of you they may decide to apportion it between you but their motivation will be ensuring the council gets paid not whatever percentage ownership you have. 

Understood. Thank you.

Exodi

This might sound harsh as I sympathise with your situation, but I expect you will stand exactly 0% chance of  now convincing your ex-partner to voluntarily pay a higher percentage of the bills you share after you have both moved on.

I do not recommend you toy with the idea of not paying the council tax, because if they call your bluff and do the same, the council may very well end up coming after you for the full amount.

What are the other bills? Utilities? Are you named on them? Some of my utility accounts only allow one person to be the account-holder...

BoGoF

What has happened to the property? Is it vacant, let? If let, why isn't the tenant paying the council tax? If vacant are there any exemptions available?

Angelica123

Doosht said:

Long story short: Myself and my ex partner own a house that we originally purchased to rent-out, or 'do up' and sell. It wasn't the home we lived in, it was separate to that. I'd always paid 50% of the council tax and all bills even though i only own 25% of the house (ex owns 75%, obviously). I did this because generally i'm a 'bit soft' like that, even though only 25% of any profit/proceeds would have been mine. 

Now, moving forward, i am in a new relationship, and so is she. I feel that i should only be paying the 25% until it is eventually sold. In the eyes of the law, would the council hold me to 50% of the council tax even though i only own a quarter if she refuses to pay her 75%?

I hope that makes sense!

Is no one living in the flat? Surely the tenants are responsible for bills? Or has the house just been lying there empty? Is your name on the mortgage? Did you own the house you were living in with your ex?

Tbh, I think the council tax is the least of your issues. You need to either get her to buy your 25% or sell the house altogether ASAP so that you both can move on. 

DullGreyGuy

If they are trying to sell it then presumably its vacant - much harder to sell with a sitting tenant as buyer has no idea if they'll leave or if they'll have to be evicted