Divorce/court/bankruptcy

[AnnieIbbo]

This is abit of a long one so please bare with me...
I filed for divorce coming up to two years ago in the mean time the family home has been reprocessed and my ex husband has just declared bankruptcy. We are already in negative equity with house. My ex had a good job earning 50k+ quit his job and is now subcontracting saying he is now only earning 18k a year. My solicitor so far seems to have done nothing to protect me he threatened bankruptcy when we first split and she assured me there would be no grounds for it. Now I have found myself with loads of debt and she seems to be doing nothing. I am in the process of looking for new solicitor but unsure if there is any point.

Can anyone point me in the right direction he has ignored every letter sent regarding the divorce and the step is to go to court for the clean break order but I am now unsure if I will have to go done the bankruptcy route too

Hope this all makes sense

Thanks for reading

[seduraed]

Re: Divorce/court/bankruptcy

It depends whose name is on the mortgage and other bills.
If it doesn't have your signature on it's not your debt.
It might be worth looking for a new solicitors. LB compare has some listed.
Bankruptcy is a severe step and will completely ruin your credit rating for at least six years.
Are you working? can you pay the mortgage?
Are there Children involve?
If you wantto stay in the house have you thought of taking a lodger . You can get £7500 without tax liability. Tell your mortgage co. but the lodger will most likely be on a restricted tenancy.
link here https://www.gov.uk/rent-room-in-your...-a-room-scheme.

IF eviction is imminent speak to shelter and ask for help.

[ostell]

Re: Divorce/court/bankruptcy

On the ex's job. He says he's subcontracting and only earning £18K a year. Has he set up a limited company and subcontracting through that? If he has set up a company then he may well be only being paid £18k. At least that is what the pay slips will be saying, and that amount will be determined by him. He will also probably be paying himself substantial dividends from the company and claiming running costs. I've helped a sister-in-law through an identical situation when the ex was claiming insufficient to pay maintenance for the son but somehow managed to run a new Jaguar.

If he has got the company use this page to check his company. You should be able to download the company returns as well.

[AnnieIbbo]

Re: Divorce/court/bankruptcy

We have already given the house back to the mortgage company we volereny surrendered the keys I moved out of the property 2 years ago as I was forced due to mental abuse had the time when he said he did not love me anymore I was 4 days overdue with out second child, I later found out he was sleeping with his PA so I stated divorce proceedings a week after my second child was born. The limited company has been set up in his partners name the company only went live on 3rd April 2017. So the dividend will be being paid to her. The bankruptcy came through on 13th April 2017. I am really unsure what to do they are currently renting a house that is costing £1200 pcm and she has just acquired a brand new 4x4. I really don't know what to do this has been dragging on so long and my solicitor seems to be doing nothing.

[AnnieIbbo]

Re: Divorce/court/bankruptcy

Both names are on the mortgage I moved out due to mental abuse he told me it was over when I was 4 days overdue with out second child so I rented to maintain a safe environment for the children. I am working full time on 19k a year. The house is now back with the mortgage company. I was unaware that he had stopped paying the mortgage and had moved out. I was already in a 2 year lease so I could not move back into the family home. I am well aware how server bankruptcy is but I am going to be left with little choice as the mortgage company have stated they will come after me for the whole debt due to his bankruptcy. I am at a total loss of what to do next. He threatened me with bankruptcy when I first filed for divorce but my solicitor assured me that he had no grounds for it but he has still managed it. The last 2 years have been very stressful and this whole situation is making me ill. He has not responded to any letters regarding the divorce and I am in the process of proceeding to court for the full clean break order but there seems little point now. I just need someone to tell me how to proceed

[Diana M]

Re: Divorce/court/bankruptcy

Now I have found myself with loads of debt

Are you paying your solicitor or are you in one of the rare situations where you have Legal Aid?

Is all the debt in joint names or just your name or a mixture of both?

If the property is in negative equity when the lender sells it (probably at auction) then they may decide to chase you (both) for the shortfall but they have 6 years to do this (or 12 years if they're not a member of the Council of Mortgage Lenders who have guidance on this).

Most don't chase immediately because they know by definition the borrower has money problems or they wouldn't have chosen voluntary repossession. Did you sign anything at the time the keys were handed back? Maybe a document which said you would take responsibility for the shortfall? Or did your ex?

Did you sign anything which said you (not just him) agreed to the voluntary possession?

What are the other debts and how much is owed in total ?

@Debt Camel may have some suggestions on how to manage the situation while you battle on with your divorce.

It would be a pity to go bankrupt if there is a light at the end of the tunnel.

My husband went BR during my divorce (which lasted longer than my marriage ) but it all came out in the wash when I was able to prove the BR was a 'device' not to pay maintenance and his business was transferred into his next wife's name and he had a villa in Tuscany.

Hang on in there and turn detective!

Di

[AnnieIbbo]

Re: Divorce/court/bankruptcy

My mum is currently paying for the divorce as she wants rid just as much as I do. We both signed the house back as a year had gone by with arrears racking up. For some strange reason that have put the house on the market not auction and also it is up for 20k less than what is outstanding on the mortgage. The house debt is in joint names. He had not paid utilities for around a year after I left but I had removed my name from all those bills.
As far as I am aware yes we both would take responsibility for the shortfall but now he has already declared bankruptcy they are saying I will have to pay the full debt.
Outstanding debt is the house and also 30k unsercured loans that we took a long side the mortgage stupid I know but we bought the house over 10 years ago in out early 20's.
Personal debt I have 2 x credit cards with around 3k on each. We used to be in the forces so both had a really good income. We since left my career has taken a step back with having children and he has climbed the ladder.
The only reason he has set up the limited company is so he can pay less maintenance and go bankrupt who is going to make someone bankrupt who is on 50k a year it's not that he could not afford to pay his bills he has chose not to. How did you prove that the company was set to invade stuff? I know nothing about this girl he is now living with after all she does not go by her proper name well not on LinkedIn/Facebook.
He is always one step a head I feel beaten no matter what I do he comes out on top. At the moment I am up to date with all my bills/rent and have been since I left him I have even managed to pay my overdraft off. I really don't know what to do. I am going to seek advice from another solicitor as so far she has had 2k and we still don't seem to be getting anywhere. It's the children I feel most for as a parent you are supposed to provide for them and in the end it will be them who suffers. I am grateful for any pointers in the right direction as I am just about ready to give up

[Debt Camel]

Re: Divorce/court/bankruptcy

If there is a shortfall of 20k on the mortgage and you owe significant unsecured debts, either jointly or by yourself, then bankruptcy is probably your best route forward.

This isn't "giving up", this is deciding on a fresh start for you and your children.

If your ex has gone bankrupt he has no legal liability for the mortgage shortfall.

This may seem annoying, but he has his fresh start. Don't let feeling aggrieved about this stop you from doing the same.

Forget about his business arrangements and his new girlfriend. Do what is right for you and your kids.

I suggest you go to your local Citizens Advice and discuss your position with them.

[AnnieIbbo]

Re: Divorce/court/bankruptcy

I thought this maybe the case. The only interest I have in his business arrangements is I know full well he is fiddling it to get out of paying child support. I am not opposed to going down the bankruptcy route guess I am just a little scared. As I currently rent how do you go about still paying rent and utilities if your account is frozen? Its that side of stuff that makes me uneasy if that makes sense. I will book an appointment with CAB is this something my solicitor should be advising me on?
Thanks for your input

[Debt Camel]

Re: Divorce/court/bankruptcy

OK loads of info about bankruptcy here: https://debtcamel.co.uk/debt-options...to-bankruptcy/. That covers form filling, a timeline for what happens when, getting a new bank account etc. Take it step by step and it will probably be less scary than you think.

If you want support along the way, MSE's forum is good: http://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/...play.php?f=136

But I do strongly recommend finding the time to go to your local CAB and talking this through with them. Take a list of all your debts and let them look at the full picture, all I have seen here is a very brief summary. You will feel a lot more confident when someone has gone through everything in detail and given you full debt advice.

[AnnieIbbo]

Re: Divorce/court/bankruptcy

I have been reading the above link. What happens with a will say my mum has left a house in a will to me what will happen with regards to that? She is very much still alive but we lost my Dad suddenly so she felt it was important to get all her affairs in order for when the time comes. Could I be turned down on bankruptcy because potentially one day I may inherit a house?

[Debt Camel]

Re: Divorce/court/bankruptcy

No - because you may never inherit that money, she could spend it all or change her mind and leave it to the local Donkey sanctuary.

If she dies during the year after you go bankrupt, your inheritance would have to be used to pay your debts and the costs of bankruptcy. If she was old and sick, it would be worth changing her will to get round this, but if it's very unlikely you may decide to take the small risk and not bother.

[ostell]

Re: Divorce/court/bankruptcy

On the company. It may have been set up by the girlfriends but the payments from it are all on the allocation of shares. You must find out more about this. What's the name of the company?
With the will: as you say you may potentially inherit a house. On the other hand the will may be rewritten so there can be no reliance on that.

[Diana M]

Re: Divorce/court/bankruptcy

I would check whether any those unsecured debts totalling £30k are 'unenforceable' in court before you go BR. Some may be especially if they were started before April 2007 or the creditors haven't complied with their statutory duties.

Why not send a section 77-79 CCA Request to each of them to establish that now. This forum has a template letter you can use.

Have any of them been sold on to a debt purchaser and are you paying them anything or have you now stopped?

Di

[AnnieIbbo]

Re: Divorce/court/bankruptcy

We took out a 100% mortgage with Northern Rock we bought the house Aug 2008.
So far I have been paying my credit cards they are all up to date.
I have paid nothing on the mortgage for 12 months and that is the same with 30k unsecured debt.
What are the above forms to investigate? As far as I am aware the house debt is still with NRAM and has not been passed on. I now feel it was irresponsible lending but it is what it is.

Update - letter printed and ready to send