Is this absolute madness?????

[FAQ]

H and I are splitting - we've agreed I'll stay in the house and he'll move out.

Now - atm I'm not named on the deeds or the mortgage.

However, H has suggested that we arrange for my name to be put on the deeds and in September (the month the bank had previously told him he could renegotiate the mortgage and perhaps bring me on board) see if we can arrange a joint mortgage together.

I know it sounds crazy and it probably is.

However, I'm not going to be in a position to get a foot on the housing ladder once we're separated, and even if we agreed to sell the house and split the proceeds H isn't going to have a mortgage lender look at him for at least the next 6yrs because of his now very poor credit history (his bank that the mortgage is with have told him that they'd consider a renegotiated mortgage however). So that would leave both of us without a foot on the housing ladder - which seems a bit pointless after all our hard slogging to make sure we didn't lose this house 2 1/2yrs ago...

Is this a totally crazy plan or is there any sense in it at all??

Under the Matrimonial Homes Act you have the right to occupy as the owner's spouse anyway.

In the divorce proceedings, the fact that your name isn't on the deeds doesn't affect the fact that you clearly have an interest in the property.

If you have your name put on the deeds and the mortgage account, you will obviously then become jointly liable for the debt.

I can't really give any advice without knowing quite a lot more (length of marriage, ages of children, amount of equity, other assets and liabilities.)

If you want to post more info I may be able to advise, but if not you need to find a local family specialist. All good divorce lawyers are members of Resolutionwww.resolution.org.uk

I know that mumble (that I have a right to occupy it and that if my name is on the mortgage account etc I'll become jointly liable for the debt). Think he/we have realised that if when divorce does come up that we can't agree things between us and it goes to the courts to decide that (it we've read correctly) he could be ordered to transfer ownership over to me and/or even (providing mortgage lender agrees?) the mortgage to me too. We'd rather do some of the hard work now while things are still ok than end up fighting later. As it stands both of us would be able to afford the payments so if either of us defaults the other could still keep the payments up IYKWIM

We've been married 8yrs, DS's are 9 months, 4 and 7. Equity......ermm not sure think it's about 13k at the moment (but has a large loan secured against it). Not sure what liabilities are

Been calling round some of the local family law ones round here and not having much joy so far.........they're all wanting to charge me ridiculous sums of money just for a 1/2hr initial consultation!! (which I can't afford right now)

if it's a joint mortgage and he meets someone else he can sell his share back to me if he likes and he can bugger off and start over again .

No seriously - I don't know - I hope it can - there's a history of things staying amicable in his family with new partners involved (my FIL has been married, and divorced, 3 times and is still on amicable terms with his first wife.......who he divorced over 30yrs ago!).

If he's got a very bad credit history, do you really want to be tied into a mortgage with him?