What would I be entitled to?

[User294759439]

I am going to give as much info as I can without saying anything too outing.

I think deep down I know I want to divorce my husband but it’s partly the thought of ending up with nothing that’s putting me off.

We own a home with probably only about £70k equity as we only bought fairly recently.
We have a car on PCP finance.
Savings of under £10k.
DH has ‘assets’ for his business such as vehicles - two financed I think and two owned outright now (sole trader).

I work part time and really always have for the last 10 years partly due to my own health and partly because even though his job was never high earning in MN terms it was long days which meant me having to manage school runs etc.

Am I likely to ever end up in a position where I could start again?

Thanks in advance.

Honestly, you need legal advice. See a solicitor or Citizen's Advice.
How many kids and what would your custody arrangements be? Could you afford to rent/ buy a property? Or council/ Housing Association? What are prices like in your area? Could you work full time? Do you have family who could help?
Figure these thing out for a start.

I think I’d struggle to buy somewhere else at the moment. I’ve had a look and there’s no properties to rent in the town I live in but 2 in the next town. Neither are great and one is more than my current mortgage. But maybe that’s just how it goes when you want to separate? You have to live in any old crap that’s available? I don’t know.

What a thought this whole thing is.

Thanks for your reply btw!

Start with Citizen's Advice. They can advise on benefits and housing. If you can get a Housing Association property the rent will be cheaper. Also look at shared ownership.

Firstly, I’m sorry you are going through this, it must be difficult.

secondly, do not let finances dictate your future - do not stay just because life will be easier, it’s not fair on either of you.

in terms of your finances, your equity should be split 50/50. You say you have £70k equity, by the time you pay legal fees, estate agency fees and probably accepting a lower than anticipated offer, expect £50k to be left. That’s £25k each.

savings should be split 50/50

the car finance is a joint responsibility if it’s in joint names.

The business assets are unlikely to be split if he argues he needs them for his work, so I’d ignore this for the time being.

Start looking for a job, even a minimum wage job pays £25k a year.

and as others have said speak to CA to see if you are able to claim any additional support although with £30k in savings I’d say this is unlikely, but even this will earn you £1500 a year in interest in a decent savings account.

Good luck

Thank you so much. It’s hard because when your relationship isn’t terrible it’s difficult to make yourself do it when life will end up much harder.

I know I’ve already wasted most of my ‘best years’ in a relationship that’s never been what it should be though.

You haven't said if you have children or not. If you would be primary caregiver that might make a difference.

What is your income difference? Could you physically work full time as a court would likely judge you on this rather then part time unless you have a diagnosed disability.

50/50 seems likely but house equity could be offset against business assets perhaps so you could end up with most of the 70k. What are house. Costs near you, could you afford a one bed? Possibly worth going to a mortgage broker and finding out what you could raise on you single income.

50/50 is a starting point but you are likely to end up with the majority of the equity as your husbands business assets are likely to be included in the calculation. Find out the value of your pensions. Get proper legal advice as to entitlement from a solicitor. Don't rely on information people give you on here as it's often wrong.

Two young teens.

I do have a diagnosed disability as does one of the children actually. I think I could work full time but likely to end up burnt out. I’ve actually just applied for disability allowance for myself (been meaning to for years) so that could help my actual living costs even if it can’t be factored into a mortgage.

I think I would have the children most of the time. Certainly not 50/50.

The assets are probably actually more or less equal to the equity in the house. There’s finance on a couple though I know.

If I did get a decent amount of the equity I could maybe afford a very cheap two bedroom. We are in a low cost area compared to say London for sure. I only earn about £19k per year currently so I really would be banking on having more than just £35k equity.

No pensions worth mentioning for either of us. Just the bog standard auto-enrolment.

Thanks again all.

You can use the entitled to website to get an idea of what other benefits such as universal credit you might be eligible for. You may also get support for housing costs depending on how you proceed.
You can have up to £6k in savings before it reduces your benefits, but you do get some wiggle room ie if you've sold a home and are buying a new one they give you 6 months to make the new house purchase so are ok being over the £6k whilst you are looking/buying etc.

It will be harder financially, but don't let it stop you. Seek proper advice regarding benefits and try and speak to a solicitor to get an idea of a split.
The court will always aim to ensure that the children are fairly housed which is why mum sometimes gets more if she is primary carer.

I've had to stretch my mortgage term to be able to get to payments I can afford and had to tie in for 5 years at not the best rate to get the figure I needed. A free mortgage broker will be able to get an idea of options. Don't pay for one, a decent one will make commission from the providers so they don't need you to pay.