Split up. Not married. Who's entitled to what?

[Peterrabbitcandoone]

Hi Hive mind,

My sister and her partner of 11 years have split up.
She owns the house they live in, all bills/mortgage are in her name etc.
He did significant work on the house when they moved in.
He pays monthly towards the bills.
All significant purchases hsve been by my sister.

I am posting her for legal advice on what he is owed not what he owed morally.

Any advice would be great.

Thanks everyone x

If he’s done work in the house that’s increased its value or paid towards the mortgage then legally he has a claim.

Not sure about entitlement to any inflationary etc rise in house prices though if hed not paid towards a mortgage. Feels like hed gwt that if he could proved hed contributed to it.

So presumably if he fitted say a new kitchen she bought hed be due money if the house is now worth £6k more than it would be without the kitchen or whatever. If he’s built an extension or something hed be due a lot more …

However if he’s stayed there free of charge I’d be deducting the amount of rent he should have paid. Not sure about the legality of that though.

I agree.

I disagree. There are very often women posting about similar situations and they are called all kinds of stupid.

I'm being sarcastic because thats what everyone say on here when a woman comes on here complaining how her partner refuses to add her to his property.

A man is supposed to provide security for his partner and a woman owes a man nothing

if he contributed anything “financially” towards the deposit or anything like that that he might. If he hasn’t then no.

Joint - 50/50.

I haven't seen posts like that? They all tend to point out the obvious- to not be dependent on a man for housing or money. That a homeowner can kick anyone out of their property, and legal rights aren't magically acquired after dating for a specific period.

Rights require signatures on documents. This is a good thing.

Also - OP - I have always transferred my contribution to the bills to DP for the house even prior to being added to it with a reference of ‘household/mortgage’ - since the calculation I contributed was based on a 50/50 split of the entire costs as a whole. And I had a spreadsheet to support this exact figure.

Note that your sisters ex may also have similar - and this therefore could be used as evidence. I would urge her to speak to a solicitor and in any case, I do think the moral reference you are applying to and what you are trying to work out is can you legally throw him out on his ear without a penny. After 11 years. Like I said if it was the other way round you would be raising hell.

He didn’t contribute to the mortgage, only paying utilities, so he can’t claim a beneficial interest on that score.

Re the work it depends who paid for the materials and whether he simply gave his time rather than money and whether the work was significant enough to add value.

I don’t like it when men chuck women out without acknowledgement of their contribution to a property. So I’d consider the issue humanely as well as legally.

You are looking for free advice.

What your sister needs is legal advice and she needs to see a solicitor.

Thsnks everyone for your input. She is meeting a solicitor today.
To answer some questions
He didn't pay towards the deposit
He gave his time in the renovations. All materials were paid for by my sister.
He has paid a contribution to the bills
Is not named on mortgage etc
They have no written agreement or verbal agreement.

Thsnks again all.

But how is this any different from renting where you can be ‘thrown out on your ear without a penny’ after 11 years? Nobody expects landlords to give tenants a share of their property. It’s her property, I don’t think that she has a moral obligation to give him a share.

Also worth noting that he has not any paid rent for 11 years, so has already massively cashed in on this arrangement. I wouldn’t be feeling sorry for him!

Did she already own the property when they got together? If yes, she will definitely stand in stronger stead.

If she didn't and she bought it with the intention of them both living in it, it could be a bit muddier as I know of someone who took his ex to court and won on this basis. She ended up having to sell her flat (which was also the home of their child) because the court ruled that as she had purchased it with the intent of it being their home together and he had 'contributed' in the form of a bit of rent paid to her each month that he was entitled to a share of the increase in equity that had occurred since purchase. She just didn't have the money available to give him any other way.

Then he leaves with what is his ie possessions, share of joint savings etc, but he isn’t entitled to her home.

wnat is he asking for?

He pays monthly towards the bills.

Which bills, and what proportion of them? If he's been paying an amount that includes contribution towards the mortgage repayments then yes he does have a claim. If he's just contributed (an equal share) towards living expenses then probably not.

Also, if he's contributed towards repairs and maintenance of the property that could signify an nvestment in the property (a tenant or a lodger wouldn't do that).

What 'significant' work did he do on the house? Could well be entitled to any uplift in value due to it. If he refitted the bathroom 12 years ago then probably minimal, if he built an extension or loft conversion etc then clearly he has a valid claim.

He gets his personal possessions, that's it, unless she is feeling generous. This is why you get married or do a civil partnership, it's more usually the woman who ends up with nothing and wondering why.

He gets nothing. If he wanted morals he should have married her.

Cringing a bit about how one sided MN can be. If this was a woman who wasn’t on the deeds the advice would be completely different 🤣

given that OP has asked about the legal position, not the moral viewpoint, the answer would be the same because the law doesn’t differentiate by sex.

No they won't because OP asked for legal advice, which applies regardless of sex.

Don’t be ridiculous. This is why we tell women all the time to be on the mortgage, buy their own home, stay working etc etc. being a partner in their home offers no protection unless they financially contributed to the deposit etc

She should ask a solicitor…

It has to be major work/improvements on the house for him to have a chance of a claim. Eg. if he built or paid for an extension.

Legally I’d say he’s entitled to nothing.

i think a lot depends on the relationship, things like does he have savings, did he pay for other things like holidays, fun stuff, things that aren’t bills or mortgages, was he ploughing lots into his pension etc. with those things in mind, if I was your sister and it was an amicable split and no abuse in the relationship I’d consider giving him a lump sum, at least something to help him put a deposit down on a renter. Or more if she can afford it.