Mortgage & Maintenance

[Farmer Jones]

Hi all

I am in the middle of a divorce (Decree Nisi...no Absolute) no financial settlement agreed.

I am in a financial mess, having lost two businesses, 7 months unemployment, £60K in Debt and nearly homeless last year.

Thankfully I have managed to secure a decent paid job.

I need advice about my mortgage on the former matrimonial home (FMH).

Currently I live in rented accommodation, separate to the FMH. I currently spend just over 50% of my income on the FMH & its arrears (I couldn't pay the mortgage fully when I was unemployed...)

My former wife runs her own business and pays nothing towards the mortgage.

I currently don't pay any maintenance to my former wife as spousal maintenance or for our son. We have an agreement based upon an email exchange which says she prefers me to pay the mortgage and she will sort the rest (she did want me to pay her Council Tax as well at one point).

I am the sole signatory on the mortgage. The property is up for sale although my former wife has some sort of hold over the property preventing me from selling it.

According to the CSA website I should be paying around £330 per month maintenance for our son. This is around 25% of the monthly mortgage payment.

I am concerned that my former wife may well come along later and demand maintenance back payments in with any settlement, despite me paying the mortgage. This has been going on for 18 months now.

Where do I stand with all of this ?

Perhaps I suggest she pays 50% of the mortgage & I pay her child maintenance ?

Help...!

[SandraF]

Hi Farmer Jones, I would first check whether or not she has registered her home rights against the former matrimonial home (FMH). She could do this without your permission although the Land registry would inform you first within 7 days of her application. You could check on this (the title deed) by buying a copy from the land registry which will cost you £3 or ring them. Also, this may help you if any debts have been registered against the FMH so that you can deal with it as well.

Spousal maintenance is not an automatic right for ex-spouses to gain unless she can demonstrate that after all your expenses are deducted, that you have enough money left over to spend on luxury items. This way the court may consider spousal maintenance

To be honest, when two people get married, it really doesn't matter who pays what as everything you both have prior to marriage becomes a matrimonial asset. When there is a dispute regarding prior assets before marriage, the courts will only be interested not to consider or include those assets in the sharing, only if there is enough in the pot to provide for the needs of both parties (i.e. housing) plus any minors of the family. Good luck

[SandraF]

"Although I am a family lawyer,, any advice given on this forum should be taken as guidance only and should not be applied to your specific circumstances. If you are uncertain as to your legal rights, I recommend that you seek independent legal advice from a lawyer local to you". Good luck