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AIBU?

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Original poster

to assume his guarantor status for his ex would no longer stand?

27 replies

BathBubblesOfHell · 31/12/2015 10:21

When DP got divorced he agreed to be a home owner guarantor for his ex so she could rent somewhere (she never worked). Since then, 5 years have gone by, he has sold that particular house, didn't own a house for a while and then bought another house with me - we are joint owners of it. I used to panic that if she didn't pay her rent we'd have to pay it for her but since time has gone on and the original house ownership no longer exists and his current house is xo-owned - Aibu / naive to assume that his guarantor status would no longer be enforceable should she stop paying her rent?

OP posts:
CallieTorres · 31/12/2015 10:24

I think you need proper legal advice on this, as it would depend on the wording on the paperwork

If the paperwork actually specifies the address that DP owned as surety, then I would guess not, but i don't know

Russellgroupserf · 31/12/2015 10:26

Does she still live in the property that he signed as guarantor for.

Original poster
BathBubblesOfHell · 31/12/2015 10:27

But as I'm now co - owner and have never signed anything surely this house could not be under threat?

OP posts:
Original poster
BathBubblesOfHell · 31/12/2015 10:27

Yes she does still live there

OP posts:
AnchorDownDeepBreath · 31/12/2015 10:29

How long was her rental agreement for? 12 months would be standard. Is she now on a rolling tenancy, or has she renewed, and if she has renewed, has your DP agreed to continue to be a guarantor?

Did he tell her letting agency when he sold that house? And if he did, did he tell them that he'd be buying another shortly?

A guarantor agreement cannot be open-ended, so unless he's continued to renew it, or she's fraudulently extended it without his knowledge, it's likely come to an end by now.

If it has been extended, he should have made them aware that he no longer owns the asset that the lease is secured against. They may have been happy to just accept proof of his income rather than a new house.

I wouldn't just presume that it's ended, though - that's dangerous when it comes to something as potentially costly as covering someone elses' rent/damages.

ObsidianBlackbirdMcNight · 31/12/2015 10:29

If she still lives there than of course it still stands, why wouldn't it?

HighwayDragon1 · 31/12/2015 10:30

If she still lives there then it'll be very likely he'll be liable for her rent if she defaults. You might co-own but he still has a stake in the house?

DonkeyOaty · 31/12/2015 10:30

I would be asking my solicitor for clarification. Remember that terrible Management buzz phrase from the 80s? Assume makes an Ass out of U and Me. Yup.

jevoudrais · 31/12/2015 10:30

Its about him paying the rent not on her behalf not your house. If he agreed to be guarantor on property A and she still resides in property A, depending on the fine print he may still be guarantor.

D0ntLookD0wn · 31/12/2015 10:30

Depending on how it's worded it could be possible that 50% (his share unless otherwise documented) could be "under threat" although given the time lapse I think he'd be safe. With housing benefit etc I'd think it very unlikely she'd just stop paying rent.

D0ntLookD0wn · 31/12/2015 10:31

But it would also only ever be under threat of he needed to guarantee the rent and then didn't pay himself.

Unlikely to have any impact on your home I would think.

Epilepsyhelp · 31/12/2015 10:33

He will very likely still be on the hook and half of the equity in your house will be counted as his so potentially up for grabs. You can't get out of being a guarantor by moving house, that wouldn't be very good security for the Landlord!!

Sounds like she has been paying her rent just fine on her own though so not sure what the panic is!

NotDavidTennant · 31/12/2015 10:33

No-one here can tell you one way or another as it depends on the terms of the agreement he signed. Seek legal advice if you're worried.

EmmaGellerGreen · 31/12/2015 10:33

You need to get hold of and read all of the paperwork relating to the property and the guarantee. That s where you are more likely to find an accurate answer.

NickiFury · 31/12/2015 10:37

Does he have children with her? Is there any sign that she will stop paying her rent suddenly?

ThomasRichard · 31/12/2015 10:44

You need legal advice but if you currently own the house as joint tenants then it might be a good idea to sever the tenancy so that you become tenants in common i.e. you each own 50% of the house separately rather than owning 100% of the house together. This protects your share of the house. You can do that for free by downloading the form from the government website. You'll also need to get your swills done at the same time as if anything were to happen to one of you then as tenants in common the share of the house wouldn't automatically pass to the other one.

louisaglasson · 31/12/2015 10:46

It's your dp who is the guarantor, so he would be liable to pay it if she didn't, not you. It would come from his money and if it came to it, his assets and his share of your home. Yours wouldn't be touched.

Is there any reason to think she might not pay her rent?

araiba · 31/12/2015 10:48

have you read the guarantor agreement?

when guaranteeing on a house rental, it usually has an expiry date the same as the rental agreement. If the tenancy moves on to a rolling contract the guarantor will not be valid anymore as it is a fixed term.

so unless he has been renewing the agreement, it should have finished but the only way to know is to read the agreement. where he lives now does not change the agreement

OldFarticus · 31/12/2015 10:49

The only way to find out the answer to this is to read the terms of the guarantee. I assume DP still has a copy and I would be having a read sharpish.

But as I'm now co - owner and have never signed anything surely this house could not be under threat?

Not as simple as that. It seems likely that you would be aware if there was a charge on the jointly-owned house (i.e. a formnal interest like the mortgage in favour of a bank). However, a claim for unpaid debt (for example) could still be enforced against a jointly owned asset.

RubbleBubble00 · 31/12/2015 10:50

He needs to get his butt into gear and get legal advice asap

araiba · 31/12/2015 10:52

also the only danger to your house is that if the ex doesnt pay the rent and then he doesnt pay it either as guarantor

Takeparacetamolandstopmoaning · 31/12/2015 10:54

The guarantor usually falls away after the initial renal period and if at that point the landlord is happy the tenant is reliable they won't renew. They can't renew without his knowledge. I wouldn't worry. It's probably not even worth paying a solicitors time although if you email the conveyancer who did your purchase they might be happy to advise for free.

VintageDresses · 31/12/2015 10:56

It will depend on the wording of the guarantee, which might have an expiry date, but if any expiry date hasn't passed he will still be personally liable for any unpaid rent but it won't be secured on your new home.

ObsidianBlackbirdMcNight · 31/12/2015 11:00

Oh that's more promising than I thought. Better check though

EdithWeston · 31/12/2015 11:22

Yes, you need to check.

He agree to guarantee her rent, so if she is still renting continuously under the same agreement it may well be in force. I think it may depend on whether she has had to renew her rental or if it (and the guarantee) continuously roll. It ought to have been clear to him when he agreed to it what circumstances a) activate his liability to pay and b) end the agreement.

Him deciding to make other changes to his finances (including what property he owns) aren't relevant to the enforceability of the agreement in respect of the lease he agree to guarantee.

As she hasn't defaulted for 5 years, she probably doesn't need a guarantor now. So if it hasn't lapsed anyhow he could perhaps look into cancelling it.

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