My husband and I separated last year. He moved out and I am in the former family home with the children. It is jointly owned (with a mortgage) , I am currently paying for the mortgage and all bills.
He is desperate to sell it as he wants to buy somewhere for himself. With the help of family I might be able to buy him out (dependant on the amount he wants for his share) but would struggle to get a mortgage in my own right for the rest as my income is a lot lower than his, so I doubt this will be an option. If I sell and rent somewhat big enough for myself and the children, within 4 years I will have no money left at rent is very expensive here and I would also need to live off the money from the house sale as I would lose the universal credits I currently get. I could try to move to a cheaper part of the country but I doubt he would allow me to move the children and I don't know if it would be best for the them right now.
I have stalled things at long as possible but he is adamant the house needs to be sold or I buy him out. He is apparently getting his solicitor to write to me to say this, to request all my financial info and to draw up a separation agreement. We haven't even discussed the split of equity yet although he is assuming a 50/50 split. Can he just force a sale of the house on his terms or can I wait a bit longer until I have had a chance to get more legal advise, speak to mortgage brokers again, look into shared ownership etc.?
In order to get a court to order the sale of the house, I'm assuming we would first need to begin the divorce process rather than the separation agreement he wants and how long would all this take.
I'm really scared, he will have no problem buying a small house with his share of the equity and a mortgage but the amount I can get a sole mortgage for is tiny. I would only be able to buy a 1, possibly 2 bed flat and I have 3 children.