House/Mortgage Mess

[HeadDoctor]

I bought a house when married to my ex, I assume joint tenants. We paid £195k but as it was 100% mortgage, a fee was added for insurance so mortgage was £200k. This was 2007.
We separated in 2008. He emotionally blackmailed me into leaving the house but that's by the by. I got a job, rented a house and we shared care of children 50/50. I've asked for statements from him but never received anything.

I have remarried. He is remarrying later this year. I am sure this confuses things.

It now turns out he has run up fees and arrears of £23.5k. I was aware there was a problem in 2010 but he told me he had resolved it.

He has no way to remortgage. His plan is "wait and see". He thinks he'll get a 95% mortgage but his credit history has been poor for years so I think this is unrealistic.

Is there any way I can force the sale of the house and ensure he is made to pay the £23.5k arrears? He will have to rent like I do. He also has two further children with his fiancée.

Obviously I need to see a solicitor but do I have a chance here or am I stuck on a mortgage that he's clearing at a rate that means it will be back to the start point in 19.5 years!!

You need to see a solicitor - you used to be able to force a sale through the court but I don't know if you still can - I remember the law changing around about the time I had similar issues. As for forcing him to pay the arrears - you're jointly liable so unless he freely agrees to do so you are both at liberty to pay or be chased for the money by the lender.

The only way to get a 95% mortgage now is using the help to buy schemes - so IMO there is little to no chance of that happening for this circumstance.

A solicitor is your best bet honestly - there is no way for you to get any cash that I can see so maybe see if you can just sign it over to him and get your name off the mortgage.

Oh yes I don't want any cash. He's threatening to make me pay half the arrears, half the negative equity and half the historical mortgage payments now. While we never had a legally binding agreement, we did agree in writing that he would be liable for the entire mortgage including any arrears and fees.

I understand that I am liable as far as the mortgage company is concerned but I'm wondering if a judge can order that as he has had the entire benefit of the property (I only lived there for 7 months), and our written agreement, and the fact that he has concealed these missed payments and fees from me, that he can be ordered to pay the whole amount.

Never separate or remarry without a binding consent order sealed by the court on finances. Anyway it's done now so yes you are right a judge might well agree a divorce division of assets where by he takes on the mortgage debt would be acceptable as he's been paying the mortgage since you left and you have not paid any of it (although on that basis any equity rise in the house since you left probably ought to be his) and you have been paying rent.
However he probably will not be able to get you off the mortgage unless his fiance earns a fair bit and can substitute on it so you will still be prevented from buying anywhere else unless and until he sells the house. Selling his house will probably render his 2 young children homeless so I suspect a court will not order sale of his house.

Would it render them homeless if they can rent a house though? He's currently paying about £900+ on mortgage and arrears. That's plenty to rent a suitably sized house in the area.

My solicitor advised me on a clean break that it wasn't worth the paper it was written on in the event he ran up arrears and got the house repossessed. I would be able to sue him but he'd be bankrupt so no point.

There is no equity in the house - it's £26k in negative equity because of his mess!

What was agreed with the divorce? Is your name still on the mortgage?

Yes. Agreement was he got the house and paid the mortgage and everything else associated with the house and I moved out and rented and he paid me £1500 to cover new furniture as he kept all the stuff we bought together.

I suspect her name is on the mortgage and house and they did not do a financial settlement as there was just debts.

I just know that when a woman is in a house in his situation with young children then the courts are reluctant to lose them their home as long as they can still keep up the mortgage and I don't think a man would be treated any differently however frustrating it might feel. Possession is almost 9/10ths of the law at times which is why most people whether male or female try to stay in the house on divorce. It sounds very difficult.
On our divorce I took on a big new mortgage to buy my husband out of the house.

England (not Scotland) values assets at date of financial settlement not separation which always surprises people so if it went up by say £200k in the next 15 years then you would get your share of that even though he is the only one paying the mortgage so from him point of view it would make sense to agree your offer - that you walk away in full settlement and transfer the house to his name IF but only if the mortgage lender will allow that - will depend on fiance's income. if she doesn't work perhaps she should.
He might also want to avoid marrying her so she had no claims on the house and it can be inherited by his children from both marriages in due course. Everyone involved should make new wills once they remarry.

He can't keep up the mortgage though, that's the point. My credit file shows the last time he made a mortgage payment on time was January 2010.