House bills payments after moving out - advice needed??

[mollya94]

hello :)

apologies in advance for how long winded this is going to be - I also didn't know where this was best suited but any advice I can get is amazing thank you for reading :)

Basically me and my now ex-partner moved into a 3 bed house 31st July 2015.
A few weeks ago I ended it for many reasons however I know his wage cannot cover the costs of the house + bills and everything else.
Before we moved in together he had a flat which cost around £450 plus his bills, CSA money, car payments and all that on top.
He managed fine beforehand; I only started paying for my share of the bills when we moved in to the new house together.
The house has a 6 month lease on it so I believe it is up in January however I need to track down where the terms and conditions etc are and have a look at this properly so I have my own copy for reassurance.
Basically he paid the rent £650 every month and I paid the utilities £425 (I earn less than him)
Now that I’m not living there I did feel bad since my name is on the lease too and briefly said il still pay towards the house.
Had a chat with my manager at work I like to keep her up to date with the situation (we actually work together and share the same manager) and she asked how it was living back at my mams then we got onto the subject of the house, I explained id still pay for the utilities £425 a month and she questioned this, only then had me thinking hold on I’m doing a nice thing by paying this but she mentioned his bills and food costs etc won’t be as high as when you were living there and utilities don’t necessarily change depending on where you live, you’ll still use the same amount of heating / hot water and now that he’s living alone with his kids round every Wednesday evening and every weekend Saturday through to Sunday evening you have to take into consideration he won’t be spending anywhere near as much.
She asked the difference in the rent from his last place which was a 3 bed flat to now and I said it was around £200 and she said I think you should only pay that or half of the actual rent cost £312.50.
Makes matters worse my mam is the guarantor for the house but I don’t think he’s that clever as to bounce the payment for the rent and then have them coming after my mam for it, besides half the stuff in that house is mine and by taking it away would only be screwing himself (I haven’t been back to get much things since I left however I am planning on going tomorrow to pick my things up) and in my opinion I’m being very generous still paying towards it (we also work together and have the same manager to make matters worse)
In this event he’s not got a leg to stand on, he’s in so much debt from a previous relationship with the children mother however half of the bond money £312.50 is mine on that house.
Last payment should be around 31st January 2016? I also need to double check this, my manager advised to make it aware how much I will pay each month and when my last payment will be but I need to reconsider how much I will pay him.
Also was advised to have proof that I am paying him every month which is easily done through bank transfer with his account details on – all id need to do is prove this on a bank statement.

What do you guys think? I’m not good in this situation and I really could do with some advice.
Any more information needed please just let me know.

Thank you all ? x

£425 utilities sounds steep. Is he claiming single person discount on council tax, presumably some usage will be lower than anticipated. His bills now shouldn't be much higher than previously when he pad it himself. Could you offer to cover the rent difference until January and make sure you give notice to ll for then. You may be able to negotiate an earlier date if ll is prepared to and can relet but your ex needs to keep up in the meantime and cooperate with you.

Regardless of the amount you pay him, he could take the money and spend it on whatever he wants. Are you still listed as an account holder on the bills? That's the most important thing you need to get sorted.

Likewise with the rent money - if he doesn't pay then your mum will be liable. You really need to take advice on this ASAP.

It's a dodgy area, leases are binding, its my understanding that you are technically liable for 1/2 rent as cosigner. You could ask landlord in writing to terminate lease but the landlord doesn't have to agree to terminate.
On the other hand if you "rock the boat" too much he could move out or stop paying rent and you'll end up in arrears. Then if things got worse your mum would be negatively affected too. Hmm? Tough situation.

Personally I would tell him that you will pay 1/2 the rent directly to landlord (with detailed records of your payments, bank statements, cheque stubs etc) from now until lease end as that is what you are liable for. In the mean time, get your stuff out as soon as you can in case he decides to not pay and bailiffs get involved etc.

Whatever the case, you should inform the landlord of the situation, as you're cosigner thy should be able to advise as they'll have seen it all before.

Good luck.

You should pay half the rent and half the (reduced single person) council tax until the end of the notice period.

Ask him whether he's going to move of stay. If he chooses to stay, he needs a new leads without you.
Don't pay utilities - these are variable and not actually what YOU are using. Get your name off any utilities immediately - you're tied into your lease, not those.

You might find that half rent plus half reduced CT is close to the £425. In which case I'd consider not making a big thing about you changing what you are paying for, if there's a reason to be amicable (working on same team) and just letting it work out in Jan.

1. Give notice - make sure your name and liability and your mum's liability is off the lease ASAP

1. If you IN ANY WAY can't trust him, pay your money directly to the landlord - just blame your mum if you have to. If he stops paying the rent, at least your money has been going to it

1. Get your name off CT and utilities TODAY.

Presumably the bond issue is OK cos the lease is both names and it will be in a deposit scheme. But call and write to your LL to tell them that it needs to be paid out 50/50 to you separately as you've split up.

Totally separate and I know you didn't ask about this...

But I don't think talking to your manager is a good idea. I think she has a conflict of interest suggesting anything when she has both of you on her team. But more than that, you need to look capable and professional at work. We all need to bounce ideas about what is fair off friends and family, but if you were on my team, I would note that you weren't sorting this out yourself, and think you less capable as a result. She's your manager, not your mate! Let her to the competent side of you that just gets on with the job, no drama after a workplace split.