Joint Owned...court now?

[Ashtanga]

Hi everyone,

I am aware that there is lots of stuff out there regarding this. But every case has its unique peculiarities eh?

Joint owned. She left around 8 years ago.

Not seen ex partner for 8 years over which period I paid the mortgage on the dot - never left the home

I have since married and have a 3.5 child

Mortgage company say they have no problem with me selling.

I have tried everything bar telepathy to contact other owner as have mortgage company.

Want to sell now as moving abroad.

What are my options given she doesn't seem to want to respond to any form of communication?

If it is the courts can I make an application (for whatever it is) myself?

Thanks so much for you help!!

M...

[PlanB]

Re: Joint Owned...court now?

Is the property owned as Tenants in Common or Joint Tenants?

Do you know where she lives even if you're not communicating (two-way)?

Why does the mortgage company want to contact her? Surely if you or Father Christmas redeems the mortgage loan then they have no need.

Did you make any formal agreement on equity sharing when you separated? Eight years later the property will have presumably increased in value and she may want her share of the capital when the house is sold. I guess you've already anticipated that.

Di

[Ashtanga]

Re: Joint Owned...court now?

Is the property owned as Tenants in Common or Joint Tenants?

Do you know where she lives even if you're not communicating (two-way)?

Why does the mortgage company want to contact her? Surely if you or Father Christmas redeems the mortgage loan then they have no need.

Did you make any formal agreement on equity sharing when you separated? Eight years later the property will have presumably increased in value and she may want her share of the capital when the house is sold. I guess you've already anticipated that.

Di

Joint tenants (I think) just trying to establish this....

I have her last address and its been suggested by an old friend that she may still be there - though I have no definitive proof of this.

The mortgage company wanted to contact her as I requested a payment break and they needed her signature - thats when i became are of potential issues if i wanted to sell.

No formal agreement re capital. but any and ALL attempts at contacting her have included my wish to reimburse her for the (2.5 years) of the 10 I have lived there. A fair amount to be established hopefully amicably. Currently estimated at around a 40k profit once sold.

[PlanB]

Re: Joint Owned...court now?

The mortgage company wanted to contact her as I requested a payment break and they needed her signature - thats when i became are of potential issues if i wanted to sell.

No formal agreement re capital. but any and ALL attempts at contacting her have included my wish to reimburse her for the (2.5 years) of the 10 I have lived there. A fair amount to be established hopefully amicably. Currently estimated at around a 40k profit once sold.

That makes sense. If you want to change the terms of the joint mortgage then she would need to be involved since it's her contract too. You would feel the same way if the boot was on the other foot

So you've already told her that you intend to reimburse her for the actual money she's paid towards the property. Did you also tell her that you have plans to sell it?

My initial thought is you need to keep this amicable otherwise she may make a claim of £20k (half the current equity) on top of the money she paid in the early stages, if you don't.

The reality is you don't have to live in a property you (co)own in order to have a financial interest in it. However when it comes to doing the maths things such as the cost of any home improvements you may have funded may be considered, as well as some of the mortgage payments you have made if it was a repayment mortgage not interest only.

You may not have established a formal agreement on any capital split but was there anything which could be described as a verbal agreement when she left?

May I ask (indelicately) does she now have a partner, because that may give a clue as to whether someone may motivate her to play hard ball even if she is willing to be easygoing over this issue?

When is the mortgage term due to expire and do you envisage yourself being in a position to remortgage in order to buy her out? Or will you need to sell it in order move abroad in preference to renting it out while negotiations continue?

Di