Indulge me! If we bought a house can I protect it?

[MrsPear]

Sparked from convo with friend - i said if i won some money on lottery i would buy a house. She then said you would have to divorse Dh first as he would gamble the house from under you. But it is my name. No you are married and he lives there so as far as creditors are concerned there are no separate assets and he can claim loans using the house. Is this really true?
Can you protect a house so the other half cannot loose it without your knowledge?

If the house is in joint names then it cannot be mortgaged or sold unless you both agree. if it is just in your name he cannot do any of those things although if he divorced you even if it were in your name he may well be entitled to half of it. If you were unmarried and it were in your name he would not be entitled to any of it.

if you are married and it is in your name he can register a spouse's right over the matrimonial home at the land registry - every mumsnetter living in a home where she is married and the house is not in her name should do this. Once that is done anyone buyer or lender will know of the spouse's interest and have to obtain their consent before proceeding.

Also if it were in joint names and you want your child not your husband to inherit your half then you need to "sever the joint tenancy" and hold the property as tenants in common. In fact you can even determine what shares you each have eg you 95% and he 5% and register that too. However if you are pretty happy together then joint tenancy i s wise as when you die it automatically goes to him and falls outside inheritance tax and is simpler, whereas if you left your half to the children 40% could be stolen by the state in inheritance tax.

JaneParker has given you a steer but this part needs a little extra clarification
if you are married and it is in your name he can register a spouse's right over the matrimonial home at the land registry - every mumsnetter living in a home where she is married and the house is not in her name should do this. Once that is done anyone buyer or lender will know of the spouse's interest and have to obtain their consent before proceeding.

The spouse's interest, or rights in this case, once noted offers them some form of protection as far as remaining in the property. If you sought to lend or sell the property the buyer would become aware of those rights as and when they inspect the register.

In such circumstances the loan/sale is likely to fail unless you can get the notice removed and invariably this would be achieved through the spouse releasing their rights in writing or by using a prescribed form HR4. Consent on it's own may help the deal to proceed but it would not remove the notice so I would expect the lender/buyer to be asking for a release in such circumstances.

More guidance on the protection of such rights is available online www.landregistry.gov.uk/professional/guides/practice-guide-20#guide-mark-12