applying to remain in home after seperation

[fireblade900]

hi, i was wondering if anyone could offer me any advice at all. my partner walked out on myself and our children 3 weeks ago. i have two children from a previous relationship of mine and a child aged 8 months with my partner in question. im also expecting our second child at the moment. all of the children live with myself at our home that we shared. the house is in my partners name only as is the mortgage. do i have any rights to remain in the home with my children. i have heard i could possibly apply to the court for an order under the childrens act schedule 1? does anyone have any advice on this matter? any information would be appreciated? thank you.

[mumblechum1]

You are correct, under Schedule 1, you could apply to the court to allow you to remain in the property until your youngest is (usually), 18. Whether you will succeed however depends on your ex's ability to manage without his equity, and to pay the mortgage in addition to his own accommodation.

What would you be able to contribute in terms of outgoings? As the mortgage is in his name alone, the problem is that if he doesn't pay it, the house will be repossessed and to be honest, I think the only way you will succeed, given the extremely long term involved, as your youngest isn't even born yet, is if your partner is very wealthy and can be shown to be able to afford to wait 18 years to receive his equity and at the same time pay the mortgage.

Schedule 1s tend to be successful where there's been a very lengthy relationship, the children are over about 11 or 12, and the dad (it usually is the dad) can easily afford it.

The difficulty is that you weren't married. If you were, it would be a different ball game altogether, but I'm afraid you may face an uphill struggle.

[fireblade900]

i can afford topay towards the mortgage, the only reason i wont at this moment in time is that im on maternity (from our first child) i do still recieve a proportion of my wage and tax credits so could manage, im not paying the mortgage at the moment as my ex is refusing to help in any way with our daughter, and isnt even maintaining contact with her. i do still pay other household bills though. he isnt well off as to speak. but the mortgage is on an interest only mortgage so if he did stop paying the mortgage he would really be cutting his nose off to spite his face as he would walk away with very little from the sale after the 100,000 was taken out for that. i doubt he will do this, but he is self employed and will be out of work in a few weeks and this is where i would usually take over the mortgage payments in past.

[fireblade900]

he has not actually asked me to leave the house at the moment, i recieved a letter written by his sister yesterday stating i have 14 days to vacate the property so he can move back here. the letter was addressed to our local council as he seems to think i will just automatically be rehoused by them, but this isnt the case as i gave up a house 12 months ago to move in here with him at his request. i would have to go to a womens and childrens hostel until im rehoused, or even qualify to be rehoused. im not prepared to do this with a 15 and 9 year old and a 8 month old baby. plus being pregnant at the moment. im not prepared to put my children through that upheavel for the sake of my ex being awkward. it would just be him moving back into the house as he has no other dependants. im hoping left a few days things will calm down a little but will have to wait and see. just thought id get some advise as to where i stand just incase it comes to applying to stay here for the children. thank you for your comments.

[mumblechum1]

The problem is that you have very little chance of getting a Schedule 1 order in my opinion.

I think you're going to have to concentrate on finding somewhere else to live. How far along is the pregnancy?

[wannaBe]

you are not married and the house is his by law so you basically have no rights over it.
You should concentrate on finding somewhere else to live IMO. also, the ages of the older two are irrelevant here as they are not his children and he has no obligation towards them.

[5madthings]

Can you show you have been contributing to the mortgage?

I think you need to speak to a solicitor and get people advice.

Can you afford to find somewhere to rent locally so kids dont have to chnge schools.

Sorry he is being such am arse.

[familylawyerlouise]

Depending on your circumstances you may be able to claim a "beneficial interest" which means that you have a stake in the house even though your name isn't on the deeds. This could give you a right of occupation and the ability to stay in the house. However this is a fairly complex area of law so have a look at the Resolution website and find yourself a cohabitation specialist solicitor in your area as you will definitely need detailed advice.

[fireblade900]

i spoke with a solicitor yesterday and she said i had three options, one being the beneficiary interest, two being occupation order (but there is no violence involved here) and the third being the schedule 1 under childrens act, she said this would be my best option that the court would look at more realisticly.

[fireblade900]

answer to pregnancy...im 4 months pregnant.

[LandRegistryRep]

Our Public Guide 4 is one that may be of interest as well here although legal advice is always recommended and definitely what you should follow
www.landregistry.gov.uk/public/guides/public-guide-4
familylawyerlouise refers to the rights of occupation as mentioned above