Divorce. Home. Money. Kids

[vimes8012]

Hi

I'm hoping to feed off your personal experiences to help my girlfriend. She met her husband in 2001. Married in 2003. Separated 2918. Going through court system with divorce currently. They have 4 kids together aged 9-15. They have a marital home that he hasn't paid the mortgage on now for 3.5 years. He owns a 50% share in an inherited home that he acquired 8 years ago. His sister owns the other half. It cannot be sold until his aunt and uncle pass on. They are both in their 70's. He is saying that house is his and it's not part of the divorce and that he wants the marital home sold and equity split 50/50. She says both homes count and he should keep the inherited property and she the family home. Neither party can get another mortgage due to serious credit issues including almost having the family home repossessed. He lives with his new partner in a new build council house with her kids. If they sell. His money will sit in his pocket. Hers can not buy a home or offer enough deposit for a mortgage. With the kids being priority and needing them to stay in local area it means any sale leaves her only able to rent. At £2000 a month average in this area she would blow through her money on rent by the time the youngest was 15. Leaving her broke and no future whilst he would have taken £150k from the equity plus have another £200k to come. He sees kids once a fortnight if he can be bothered but usually cancels roughly 33% of visits. She pays for all the mortgage and mortgage debt. She had to force him through CNS to pay maintenance. All she wants is the home that her kids can live in and will be hers once they are 18. He turned down an offer of him keeping his inheritance and taking £80k once kids are 18. Even though this allows him on current equity a 53/47 split in his favour. He has lawyers. We do not and will not be able to get any money to hire one. Mediation failed and we have an adjourned first hearing in late March. Does anyone know if it is likely that after such a long relationship that both homes will be taken into account either by her having a direct entitlement or by it being considered as providing for his means. Or will they say it is only based on the marital home and nothing else? If he gets what he wants it leaves him basically with £350k and her nothing.

This sounds really tough. I would beg steal and borrow to get legal advice. He is trying to walk all over her telling her what she is and isn't entitled to. She needs a solicitor representing her so she can stand her ground. Good luck.

The inherited asset his a natural asset but how much weight that would be given I’m not clear- his aunt has lifetime right to reside so it could be another 20 years before he can benefit from it

Main priority will be to house the children - so courts will look his to achieve it based on needs. The fact he’s moved in with ow means he’s housed which could go in her favour.

She needs a solicitor

Marital asset not natural

Once it is determined both houses count or only the one does. It becomes more straight forward. His solicitor has so far proven incompetent. The first court hearing was adjourned as she had failed to complete the most basic of tasks. We didn’t fair better but we tried with limited advise to do what was expected. I know she is a junior and much cheaper so I think we need to find similar but god knows how or where. If anyone has any knowledge of how to find one it certainly would help

notasolicitor ... but I think the thing is, although yes he does have part ownership of another property, he can't use it, or forsee being able to use the equity in it in the immediate term.

As PP said, children are hte priority. If he is housed then it might boil down to a question of how to house her and the children.
If she's paying the mortgage, then can then not continue?

Would it be possible to downsize at all - is there enough equity to buy just somewhere for her (perhaps with a Mesher Order so it gets sold when youngest is 18?)

If she's not confident that she's being represented well it might be worth getting a second opinion. You can do a lot of the legwork yourselves and just use a solicitor when you need them. Look at using a direct access barrister or solicitor for hearings?

add to say Courts don't like issuing Meshers but it is possible to get them where it's the appropriate thing to do.

I think it also depends on his and her salaries.
I would also beg borrow or steal to gain legal advice your nearly there if court is looming.
I think her offer is fair and one I would want too keep it too. the court might look at it as he is adequately housed therefore she can keep the house for her and the children. If she's already paying the mortgage on her own that could count or do you live there to?

She needs to get a solicitor abs if she is not happy with the one she has, she needs to get another one. Inheritance is not considered part of matrimonial assets if it’s not intermingled abs in this case it sounds like it’s not. Account will be taken of the needs of the parties but courts don’t generally think parties need to own a house just be housed.