Maintenance Payments Ending

If you could afford it, why not just take on the mortgage and keep the house?

Doesn't it also depend on what "three times as much" actually is? If OP works p/t on £15k and exDH earns £45k, paying 50/50+spousal maintenance and OP retained the family home, when exactly does exDH have a chance to be allowed to buy a house or have some cash? OTOH if she's earning £50k and he's on £150k, he can probably pay some direct to DC, as can OP.

They are only assessed on RP income, so DF earning "three times as much" doesn't come in to it.

Are they going to uni in September and none of the 4 of you have raised how this will be funded?

Clean brakes were introduced on the basis that the child maintenance service would be effective and frankly it isn’t
But equally I strongly suspect the OP like many of us did not bring children into the world expecting that they would just fuck them off financially when they hit 18. Nor that the cost of university would escalate at the rate it has
The system is flawed

I think that's what a clean break is all about? If you want to benefit from your partners high earnings, don't divorce him. It would be very difficult to achieve parity across households, post-split, when people get new partners etc. And don't forget the finances of the pre-split household have to fund 2 homes.

I was responding to @Praying4Peace who stated that OP was "still entitled to 50pc", which she is not, due to DC leaving education and moving to HE.

I think until the children are no longer financially reliant on the parents it’s entirely reasonable yes.
And the court to do often agree with that stance.
Most people don’t pursue it though, but they should

Longterm, you think the a higher earning parent has to make the other parent’s household income equal? Thankfully the courts do not agree with this these days. That’s why homes are sold, proceeds split and spousal is minimal. Both parents should be maximising their own earnings.

Well thats nonsense.
children should not be living the life of a millionaire half the time with their one parent and then on bread and water with the second.

Are they moving out for uni?

Are they getting loans?

When mine went to university, they got full loans because I had a low income. Their dad gave them some money directly- more like pocket money, but still helped.

Your OP only refers to "earnings", and we've established that plenty of people receiving benefits refer to them as their "earnings".

What are you doing to maximise your earnings? Are you or will you be living beyond your means when spousal maintenance stops? What have you been doing to save money for DC for university, given that you've had years of maintenance payments?

If DC have a good relationship with DF, there's no reason they can't ask him to help them through university in the same way as any other parent would do. The issue of you no longer receiving that 50% of their living costs is yours; they are adults and can contribute to your household from their own funds, or you can continue to provide their home as your 50% contribution, while their DF pays his 50% direct to them for their university costs.

Differences in income between the pair of you shouldn't come in to it; DC costs are X amount and you both pay towards them.

Which is where my comment about the judge came in to play
The OP I believe can get yourself back to court ASAP and ask a judge to amend the original order.
The fact that you had one in the first place means the precedent has been set in terms of support and might well help going forward
But as I say it very much depends what the judge has had for breakfast

Child maintenance legal obligations cease when the "child" finishes secondary education, unless a court order stipulates that it continue through university. OP will not be entitled to anything from exDH unless a court mandates it.

At 18 surely you both sit down with your twins separately and let them know what you can afford/are willing to give them as financial support. If that's not enough, they top it up with student loan and part time work?
My parents were separated before I started uni and this is what they did.

As they are adults they are responsible for arranging their own finances. If hey need money from their parents it's their job to arrange that with the both of you.

You need to step back, OP. All you can do is arrange the financial agreement between yourself and your children. Your ex can do the same directly with his children.

No, it’s not understandable at all even if that was the case but actually there was no equity in the property. He just wanted his name off the Mortgage so that he could put his name on the new Mortgage with the new woman.
And guess what? Five years later he still hasn’t.
oh, and we have a 15 year-old so Housing him should’ve been a priority for the courts but it wasn’t. It isn’t.

The children can get PT & holiday jobs

He can pay the children directly some money if he wishes to

Exactly this. They are adults now, and need to have an adult relationship with their father.

If you are low-earning then they should get the full university loan - find out what the parental contribution should be, and then perhaps suggest to them that you will pay half of this. Go through the finances with them, so they understand.

No it's not not ,having a difference of opnion is not misogyny.

If you could afford it, how were you forced to downsize? If he wanted his equity from the former family home, that’s understandable.

And that shitty attitude has led to my 21-year-old having to spend a summer sleeping on a sofa because that is exactly what my ex did forced us to massively downsize. When actually there was no need for it. I could more than afford the property but he put me into a position where I wasn’t allowed to keep it.
I have a bed. The other child has a bed. The only person that suffered as a result of this is our other children. They have no sense of stability no sense of safety net for a place they can return to after university. They’ve paid through the nose for things that other young people haven’t had to.
It’s a dick move that should be avoided if possible

In which case surely the obvious thing is for them to ask their dad if he'll help?

Supporting the DCs directly may well be the decent thing to do, but he's certainly not obliged to pay anything to their mum

Misogyny is alive and well on this thread.

I get the impression its the spousal support you want to continue rather than the child maintenance.

He can support them directly with uni now, you dont have to be involved in that.