Single mother, left to pay mortgage that she can't afford.

[Jimdon]

Hi,

Im writing for my sister inlaw who's fiancee left her and their 2 children for another woman, they own a house together which will inevitably be sold but her now ex partner is refusing to pay any of the mortgage since he has left.

It is impossible for my family member to pay the mortgage and all the associated bills alone, and support 2 kids. so im trying to help her find a solution. She has had brief legal advice from a solicitor who agrees that he should in fact be paying half of the mortgage as it is half of his property, regardless of the circumstances that he is in. after all My sister in law didn't ask for any of this and her ex left on his own accord.



She is in the process of drafting a letter to the ex to state that she can not possibly afford to pay the mortgage by her self and unless he agrees to pay half then they both risk losing the property because there will be no payments made what so ever.


The question im here to ask is this a wise move or are there other aspects she should be looking at that she doesn't know about.

any advice is much appreciated

[atkinsonlaw]

Hi there,

I am a Paralegal and a family law specialist. I am also a McKenzie Friend.

Firstly, she is better getting a 'legal' letter sent to him. If they can sort it out without any legal intervention then great, but I suspect that is not going to be the case.

The CSM (child support) will certainly help and if needed an attachment of earnings will be made against him.

If the house is jointly owned by them then he has to pay something towards its upkeep. Rather than going through the courts for a full ancillary relief matter (finances after separation or divorce) you may be better to arrange to get a Consent Order made up. This is an agreement where he agrees to pay the mortgage and for the children and you can put many different clauses in it to make sure that you can stay in the house and that he pays his fair share.

We draft such orders regularly. All you then need to do is ask a District Judge at your local court to endorse the order.