*gulp*
I'll fully hold my hands up to being totally clueless and more than a bit lost with legal things.... :(

I need to sort out taking my name off the joint Mortgage with my Ex (we werent married) Does anyone have any experience of this and or advice...Very gratefully recieved if so.... Im a little all at sea with it.

Also any experience/advice on going through small claims court to claim back money from sale of house (I was paying the mortgage for 4 yrs... but orgionally his house)

Liv :)

As far as I know it would have to go to court.  I had the opposite to you my ex was taken off, but he had never paid a penny, had negative equity  and we had children so it was just signed over to me.

When hubby separated from his ex, we looked into this (few years ago now though) and our best option was sell their house (joint mortgage but only hubby paid it) and then the proceeds were split down the middle after fees etc deducted.

I am not sure so please dont quote me and hopefully someone can confirm if right or not, but even though you werent married you are still classed as common-law husband and wife and so same entitlements.  You would have a beneficial interest in the house (as you contributed to household).  Your ex (if not selling) would therefore have to get valuations etc and you would have a stake in the equity (if any).  Your ex would then have to buy your half of the equity.  Not sure of the court process etc (we just sold house and split the proceeds).

I hope you get things sorted though Liv.

Kerri xx

All I know is that last year my ex finally got my name off his mortgage (only took him 6 years) and all I had to do was sign a paper stating I gave up all rights to the house and agreed for my name to be taken off it. He had it all sorted with his solicitor. I go my solicitor to look at it to play safe, but that wasn't strictly speaking necessary.

, but even though you werent married you are still classed as common-law husband and wife and so same entitlements.

I am afraid it is a lot more complex that this. 

If someone owns a house before a partner moves in and the house was not assumed as the " matrimonial " home then the house belongs to the original buyer. ( there are exclusions to this also)

Each case must be looked at individually and worked out exactly based on it's own merit.

A person is only seen as a common law wife if not only did they act our this role but others from the outside would have believed they were a married couple. A bit complex.

HG :-)  it is very complex but here is some advise. ( I do ry not to give it too often as someone always comes along and has "known" someone that had another outcome :-D :-D if you get my drift :-) ) 

Techically contributing towards mortgage payments ALONE doesn't give you financial entitlement of compensation as if you had paid toward rent there could be no compensation. However you name is on the mortgage so you have or may have weight to show that by you being on the mortgage you intended for the house to become " matrimonial" residence.  The intent is the weighing factor here.

If you Ex is paying the mortgage properly and you are not worried about being left with debt etc at this time I would strongly advise you get a very good matironial/family law solicitor and sit tight for now.  Whilst your name is on the mortgage you have some leverage to get him to pay you some money. It can all be agreed in writing so neither party can back out.  IE your money or cheque is brought to the solicitor and you sign the release of the property.

(joint mortgage but only hubby paid it) No disrespect Kerry but if I had a penny for everytime I heard this.  :-)  A married couples money is a married couples money equally.

Yes I know that (being a married couple and all ;-)) I was just saying that hubby was the one who paid the mortgage and why I also pointed out it was a long time ago now and that hopefully someone would correct me. :-)

I know Kerrib  it sounds picky but ( and because you said it again) if they were married he didn't pay the mortgage only. :-)

I hear cases so often where people keep seperate accounts even whilst married and spilt the bills. So say someone paid the mortgage direct debit and the other paid council tax and utilities, an equal balance roughly.  After seperation you then hear the person who had the direct debit coming from their bank saying they paid the mortgage  THEY DIDN'T it was equal  :-)    New partners are the worse for saying it too :-D :-D :-D

I swear ( NOT DIRECTED AT YOU )  I bang my head sometimes at the high % of the population with no common sense. :-)))

> but even though you werent married you are still classed as common-law husband and wife and so same entitlements.

I always thought there was no such legal standing as common law husband/wife in the UK and that it was not considered the same as being legally married.  Although, wouldn't the fact that the mortgage was in joint names count as joint ownership?

Joint ownership and intent is two different things.  2 freinds can own a house in joint ownership and have no intnetion to be married but have the financial matters agreed seperately.

I had this with my ex.  We weren't married were both named on the mortgage and both contributed to it and other bills.  When we split I wanted £10,000 (although I was entitled to half the value of the house) so I could put a deposit down on a new place.  Ex eventually settled for giving me the 10K although legally I was entitled to half the house, half the joint bank account and a reasonable amount of the items in the house.  This was 6 years ago and I live in Scotland so the law might be a bit different regarding co-habitees.  I'd contact your mortgage company and tell them you want to sign the mortgage over to your ex if that's the case.  If my house with my ex had been sold instead of him "buying me out" I would have been entitled to half the money made and I could have forced him to sell if he couldn't afford to buy me out.  Get a solicitor to help you.  Lots of them have a free 1 hour consultation in the first instance.

If your ex had his own house in his own name and then sold it to buy a house with you, I doubt you could claim compensation for any mortgage money paid, but again you could ask a solicitor about this.

CG

Logic would dictate that you would be entitled to half the equity increase since it went into joint names. 

I imagine at the time your name went on the property it would have been valued. 

So say it was £100 thousand, and now valued at 125 thousand the increase in equity halved wodul be your cut, assuming the mortage didn't increase and there si no negative equity.

Definately a case for legal advise.

i'm in the process of having to buy my ex out ( we wernt married either)  he wants his half right now, but he cant get it as i cant move ( i have a 7 year old son with him) so legally he cant MAKE us move out/sell up.  i do however have to add to my mortgage to buy his share, 1st off i have to buy 12.5% which comes to 25k,  then if a circumstance included in his solicitors letter comes up ( ie, i get married, die, harry leaves school or i vacate the property for over 6 months) at any of these points i have to buy the rest out ( a following 27k)
i've had to do all of mine using a solicitor and the building society i hold my mortgage with - all a pallaver i can tell you and it isnt anything quick!

my own circumstances are obviously different to yours, so you will have to see what they say.