Separated with mortgage

[Button2121]

Hi all, I’ve came on here hoping someone with knowledge of this can answer a question for me as I used this forum previously and have had excellent advice.
Heres the scenario: couple who have separated have a joint mortgage, wife leaves the marital home and is renting a property with her new partner (she rented for a year on her own before she met partner).
Ex Husband is living in the marital home and has been there for 4 years since wife left. They have 2 kids. Son who lives with dad. Daughter who lives with mum. They are both adults now but daughter was 14 when mum first left.
My question is: is wife no longer liable for half of the mortgage payments every month as she has had to pay rent? The solicitor has advised that husband is fully liable for full mortgage as he is benefitting from living in the marital home.
*just to add, wife is refusing offers of valuation to buy her out, and won’t agree to sell the property neither.
Thank you.

The mortgage lender has its own contract with you both, joint and severally liable, and gives not a fig for the opinion of your solicitor or your relationship status and place of residence. You both are liable for the mortgage. You each have different things to lose by calling the other one’s bluff and not paying though - both your credit ratings, and one of yours place to live.

It’s been years! Just sort your divorce out already!

I wholeheartedly agree! It needs to come to a resolution. Thank you for replying @Testina . Can you tell me why ex husbands solicitor is advising he is liable for the full mortgage payment, and when the house is sold, the equity will be divided equally with no reference to the mortgage payments me has made in his own for 4 years to date? I’m confused as ex wife is living with a new partner with a good salary.
Thanks again.

*he has made

He is liable for the full mortgage payment. But so is she. That’s what joint severally liable means - the mortgage lender can chase either for full payment. Regardless of separation.

No solicitor can say how equity can split because there are no legal calculators for exact amount - you’re in England or Wales, yes?

A solicitor can only advise what a course is likely to agree to.

The start point is 50/50, and either party can argue for something different.

The person in the house will say, “I want more because I paid the mortgage on the own for 4 years.” Then the other party will say, “I disagree because half the mortgage that you paid should be treated as rent to me, because you had the benefit of the house and I didn’t.”

They negotiate it, or they waste money taking it to a judge 🤷🏻‍♀️

Are you married or not? You talk about ex-husband, but then say wife. And it sounds like you’re not divorced if you have sorted out the house.

Oh and wife’s new boyfriend’s salary is neither here nor there. Irrelevant to her share of the marital assets, as it should be.

Often an agreement will be made that the person living in the property will pay the whole mortgage as they are “paying rent” in a way for the half that is the other persons. But as previous posters have written, the bank doesn’t care about that as you are both liable for the full payment.

I am currently paying rent and contributing to the mortgage as my exDP can’t afford to pay the whole mortgage. We have an agreement that this will continue for a year and that the house will then be sold, I couldn’t imagine it dragging on for four years with me still contributing!

@Testina and @freesia86 thank you.
I’m neither the wife nor husband. They reside in Scotland so I’m unsure if the law will be different? They aren’t divorced as wife won’t co-operate (I said ex wife as separated for 4 years, but legally still his wife)
thanks again, I really appreciate your advice.

Yes, the law is different. It’s very relevant what jurisdiction they’re in! Pensions on divorce are treated quite differently, for example. Although joint and severally liable mortgage debt is the same throughout the U.K. Has he filed for divorce? She can’t just refuse to co-operate.

It is a shame she won’t agree to the house being sold which will mean £££ in legal fees. I guess it is comfortable for her the situation she is in as he is just paying the bills. Lucky for her that he can afford the whole mortgage and he is still paying it, my cousin’s exH simply stopped paying it and it was a horrendous situation.

It is going to be a hard year for me paying rent and paying towards the mortgage but I am lucky we can manage this by tightening our belts and changing our lifestyles drastically while we navigate the new normal. If I didn’t contribute, the bank would repossess the house and my credit rating would be gone as my ex cannot afford the payments on his own.

Thank you. He has spoken to his solicitor and his solicitor has advised there is no alternative now but to go to court. Can anyone tell me what the process will be? ie will his wife receive a letter advising him that court now is the only option, or will be court papers just be served? Also, how long and costly can this be? I’ve asked him to ask his solicitor these questions but he just said his solicitor said that court will force a response from her. Thanks again for all the help and advice on here. I very much appreciate it.

Why are you even asking?
It’a his business, he’s a grown adult, he’s engaged a solicitor.