Safeguarding deposit for son . Legal advice needed please.

[Cricketsandowls]

Posting for traffic here and need advice from people working in this area.
We are about to give our son a substantial sum for a deposit on a house with his partner. They have a child but are not married. My concern is what would happen if they split up in the future. Her parents are giving an equal amount , but in the event of a split I am concerned he may lose the deposit. Or would it be sold and split equally? I don’t know what the legal situation is and how we could ensure he doesn’t lose the money in the event they split up. Do we need to do anything to protect the money before we give it to him?

Do not get too involved as this is likely to cause hostility and impact their relationship.
Stand back and be supportive.
Try not to interfere.

But YOU don't need to do anything. He's earning well and they're not married. You will be creating an issue that doesn't exist. The house was 50/50 in and it will be 50/50 out.

@Cricketsandowls

You can get the deposit ringfenced so that it is protected for him.
I would have thought that his partners parents would want to be doing the same thing.

Its only sensible.

The deposits can be ring fenced for each of them, its the easier way

How though?

He’s not earning well. He is self employed and his work is intermittent and not reliable. They haven’t got married because they can’t afford to and don’t want a register office wedding so they have prioritised a house.

If they want to get married this would all be pointless anyway. You will do far more harm than good by interfering. They're adults, leave them to it.

I’m not intending to interfere! We are concerned that by giving a large amount of money it may end up being lost to our son at some point in the future. Just looking at legal ways to safeguard it before giving it and before the legalities are completed. Why is everyone being so hostile?

Even if they get married, this could be used to fall back on in a divorce.
Yes it does have a time limit. but many couples have done this.

Where is the money coming from? You say we a lot. Is it yours solely - did you earn it entirely on your own without your husband? Or is it family money that you're jointly deciding on?

How come you get to treat money as family money but they don't?

I'm afraid you won't get answers here. You need professional legal advice but be prepared for your son not to agree with what you are advised.
In any case if her parents are gifting the same amount to their daughter I don't see a problem. If they split up then they each get 50% back.

OP I see your question as perfectly reasonable. Why would any parent want to gift a sum of money, knowing that the money could move onto another family if the first relationship was to end? Just weird replies. Of course the OPs son will ensure his child is housed….but that doesn’t mean to say he should lose his deposit.

As described in my post above.

They buy the house as Tenants in Common with a deed that specifies their share of ownership including the deposit.

If they marry there could be a prenup ( from both) about agreeing the share of house in any break up.

If you want to maintain absolute control of the money you could put your deposit in as a co-owner, and have a share in the house. But that is very messy, stores up future tax complications, issues with Wills, and most people would probably say ‘no thanks’ .

When they buy the property the solicitor will ask them if they want to hold the property as Joint Tenants or Tenants in Common.

If they opt for Joint Tenants then the property is wholy owned by both of them. If one of them dies then the property instantly becomes 100% the property of the other, it does not form part of the estate of the deceased. In this scenario the outcome you fear if they split up could indeed happen although very unlikely.

If they opt for Tenants In Common then the deeds can specify exactly how the ownership is split, whether 50:50 or in a different proportion if they start with uneven deposits.

I hope that if they do split you will be more concerned that he should ensure his child, your grandchild, is adequately housed and won't be growing up in poverty and that might be best achieved by sacrificing perfect fairness and equality in dividing assets - especially if she ends up with a much lower earning potential than him due to taking time out of her career for childcare.

Not sure why you're getting such a hard time OP. Does seem like a reasonable question!
Tenants in Common is the best bet, they will own it 50 50 and then should they sell then they get back 50 50, but each share remains theirs and doesn't automatically pass to the other.
If the other parents are trying to protect her interest then they'll probably suggest the same. As PP has suggested doing anything more complicated will become tricky especially if they have a mortgage too. I have loaned an amount to my Dsis for a flat but it's mortgage free so we have a loan agreement which basically says she'll pay me back in a lump sum or on sale of property and I have a registered interest in the property like a bank would if they had a mortgage on it. But that all gets super complex if they have a mortgage too.
I think you have to accept that the gift is just that, a gift. You can suggest your son sets up as a 50 50 tenants in common but know that if they got married and split up then some years later and the wife had primary custody, it's likely he'd get less from the house. That's just the way it is really. If they remain unmarried then he'll always be able to get his 50pc.

Speak to a solicitor, many people do this it’s quite common to ring fence deposits between individuals when buying a house.

A solicitor can draw up an agreement of exactly how much each of them put in as a deposit and that any equity is divided 50/50.

Because it’s perfectly normal for people to ringfence deposit payments if they’re unequal when buying a house, it’s good financial planning and not to do so is very naive.

I have no idea why people are being so hostile, this is sensible financial planning and it’s very common.

Speak to a solicitor and have each of their deposits ring fenced, and it’s not interfering as some people have suggested since this is your money you’re gifting to him.

Not true, even if you’re married if you’ve bought as tenants in common and have a legal agreement as to who put what into a house deposit it can still be taken into account.

Them being adults is irrelevant, OP is handing over a large sum of money here, it’s entirely reasonable and sensible to ensure this is managed correctly.

The level of financial naivety on this thread is staggering, the OPs questions are entirely normal and sensible.

The couple need to decide if they want to hold the property as joint tenants or tenants in common and if so, in what shares. The OP has been told this multiple times over this thread.

But in this case her parents are putting in an equal amount so the deposits are not unequal.

Irrelevant really, the OP has asked how to ensure the money she gives is ring fenced, so having it all agreed by a solicitor does that.

I think a relationship in the early stages is hard especially with a child.
It is stressful, tiring and money is tight.
These issues can cause relationships to fail.

I think supporting your son and partner with time and help is the best way to protect his assets and his money.
They are more likely to stay together if they have family support.

THIS!

Creating mistrust and division when the money is 50/50 anyway is naive/stupid.

Unmarried tenants in common means that if your son died suddenly, his partner may have to deal with the loss of her home and more importantly her child's home at the worst time of her life.

But you know what, you go ahead. Don't be surprised if you don't have a particularly close relationship with her and subsequently their children.

Can I ask how exactly I am creating division and mistrust? How am I not providing time and support? What on earth is creating this impression? I give as much practical and emotional support as I can!