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Legal matters

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Original poster

House title deeds when married

43 replies

oliviablue9 · 15/11/2019 11:04

IL’s have kindly bought a house for us. I am so grateful beyond words.

They have put DH alone on the title deeds. I wouldn’t have questioned this had anyone not said anything about it.

But recently the ILs made a point in telling me it was protecting both of us, and I started to get a bit uneasy, because I’m not sure this rang true. But I have a poor understanding in property and legal.

Is there anything I should be considering, in case if circumstances where DH is no longer with us for whatever reason?

We have been married 10 years with children.

OP posts:

frazzledasarock · 15/11/2019 15:12

I wouldn’t be happy if my home was willed to my children in my DH’s will. You could live a very long time after your DH dies & your DC could make you homeless.

How is that fair or acceptable at all?

Are you meant to hope you die before he does to avoid becoming homeless?

Dontdisturbmenow · 15/11/2019 15:40

I disagree with most posters. They clearly wanted it to go to their son, it was a gift to him and it is therefore right he should honour this.

Indeed it might not make much difference on divorce but it could if he passed away and decided to leave it say back to his parents.

I don't think OP has a say in it, it 2asca gift from parents to child and that's that.

titchy · 15/11/2019 17:01

I don't think OP has a say in it, it 2asca gift from parents to child and that's that.

You'd have a moral argument if they bought him a buy to let, but it's OP's family home. So no, it's not just a gift from in laws to her dh.

If he was run over by a bus tomorrow she could well find herself and her children homeless, with a long legal battle ahead of her.

If she owned the house as joint tenants it would pass seamlessly to her on his death, protecting her and the children, irrespective of what he put in a will.

MarieG10 · 15/11/2019 18:24

They seem to think putting it solely in his name will protect it from your grasp should you divorce. I'm not sure it will

If they really didn't want to protect it they should have used a trust. I know of some friends whose family did that when they bought them a house. My friend does have grated teeth over it as although she has a beautiful house, he knows she couldn't touch it if they divorced. However, I assume it would be balanced by other assets but it isn't straight forward

prh47bridge · 16/11/2019 00:09

In the event of divorce the house will go into the pot to be divided between you regardless of how it is owned. You will be entitled to a fair share of the assets. Whether a fair share is more or less than 50% depends on a range of factors.

If he dies what happens to the house depends on his will. However, if he does not make adequate provision for you, you will be able to make a claim under the Inheritance (Provision for Family and Dependants) Act. In broad terms, the courts will want to see that you get at least as much as you would have got in a divorce.

MarieG10 · 16/11/2019 07:40

@prh47bridge

In the event of divorce the house will go into the pot to be divided between you regardless of how it is owned.

Um. I'm not sure it is as straightforward as that. Where have you seen that? There are other complicating factors, ie overall assets, length of marriage, whether there are children and what their needs are. No one on MN could give a definitive but if name is not on deeds it is definitely a lot more complicated and less likely to access it as an asset

Oh..and as per my post above, a house held in a trust, the spouse would not be able to access any financial provision from it unless the trustees agreed although unlikely. If in future years when my kids were older and I gave them any substantial assets, I would definitely place them in a discretionary trust having seen others gift assets to kids to have the spouse walk away with them on divorce.

Collaborate · 16/11/2019 08:30

Prh47Bridge did not claim to know the percentage split of the property on divorce. All they mentioned was that it will be shared. I'm not sure if you expected them to explain the precise percentage OP should expect to receive on divorce (as quite clearly she will very soon be advised by some posters to "divorce the abusive s**t") but it simply would be both impossible and inappropriate to do so on this forum.

On divorce it matters not that the property is in husband's name or joint names. It is the marital home. It has a central place in the marriage, whoever's name it's in. If it's put in to joint names that doesn't change the fact that it was from a source wholly external to the marriage, with the husband being able to argue for a greater share on sharing grounds.

Where have I seen that? In numerous reported court decisions, but I wasn't expecting to have to post a skeleton argument, and I suspect neither was prh47Bridge.

Cuddling57 · 16/11/2019 08:48

I fully understand what everyone is saying but how does a parent protect a gift to their child in the event of divorce from partner?

Cuddling57 · 16/11/2019 08:49

Although I guess when they have kids together it changes everything.

Collaborate · 16/11/2019 09:23

how does a parent protect a gift to their child in the event of divorce from partner?

Keep the property in their name (the parents).
Put it in to a trust (though this may still be vulnerable on divorce).
Make the gift conditional upon the spouses entering in to a post-nuptial agreement that excludes consideration of the property on divorce.

Cuddling57 · 16/11/2019 10:46

Thanks @Collaborate

IceCreamAndCandyfloss · 17/11/2019 09:15

They were very silly to not have taken legal advice on this. It would have been better to put in their name and set up a trust for their son and grandchildren.

Morally, many people would walk away and leave it within the family that paid for it but equally many wouldn’t and they could end up losing a lot of money.

Dontdisturbmenow · 17/11/2019 13:19

Are you actually sure that it is only your OH named on the deeds and not him AND his parents?

StealthMama · 17/11/2019 13:54

As far as I recall a gift given whilst married is considered a marital asset. If it was gifted to him prior to your marriage it would be different.

Collaborate · 17/11/2019 14:43

As far as I recall a gift given whilst married is considered a marital asset.

You recall wrongly.

fastliving · 19/11/2019 03:00

Be very careful op, they are trying to pull a fast one...don't rely on divorce court to be fair

sofato5miles · 19/11/2019 03:11

PP who mentioned that is their family money, isn't the point that once you are married, you become family?

At what point, in your minds do you become family? The couple giving the gift, clearly weren't brother and sister, so why is their unit of a different 'family' status to yours?

BlouseAndSkirt · 19/11/2019 03:23

Um. I'm not sure it is as straightforward as that. Where have you seen that?

prh47bridge is a lawyer.

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