how to get ex off house

[orliemac]

Hi, just wondering if anyone can help with this one:

my fiance & his ex bought a houe 5 years ago, they lived in it & split the mortgage for 1.5years until they split & she left with their then 4 year old child. For the last 3 years or so, my partner has been paying the mortgage, he did fall behind as he was off work due to longterm illness but as off Sept last year we have been paying the mortgage in full & with some extra (about €150 a month) to cover the arrears, which are at about €10k now. His ex wants us to buy her out of the house but we cant afford it & would not be approved for a mortgage ourselves with the ways the market is.
when they bought the house, she took out a loan in her name only to buy things for the house & a car for herself. We have offered to take over the repayments on the balance of this loan, about €15k as consideration for her share in the house. She recently won a court order to have the house valued and says that the house is worth €180k to €185k, the outstanding mortgage is at about €170k, not including any penalties for early settlement if we sell.
Could she force us to sell the house or can we apply to have her taken off the deeds and mortgage as any equity she had paid in has been offset by the 3 years she has not been paying the mortgage (it was 100%)? any help on this would be much appreciated.

 

[fizzelina]

you need a solicitor so engage one and explain the situation and decide the best offer to make / action to take. good luck

 

[mathepac]

... Could she force us to sell the house ...

First off in relation to the property owned by your fiance and his ex, there is no "us", only your fiance and his ex.

As she has already obtained a valuation via court order, I believe she intends selling and she can legally force a sale.

... can we apply to have her taken off the deeds and mortgage as any equity she had paid in has been offset by the 3 years she has not been paying the mortgage (it was 100%)? ...

No.

Your fiance needs legal advice specific to his circumstances as it sounds like his ex has already taken certain steps.

 

[csirl]

The danger is getting into a tit for tat over who paid for what etc. e.g. your fiance claims he paid most of the mortgage, his ex claims she paid most of the cost of raising their child etc. etc etc - things can start to get very messy.

As mentioned above, legally speaking she is one of the owners of the house (along with your fiance). And it is not unreasonable for her to want to sell a house that she owns, but no longer lives in - I think most people would do the same in her position.

There are two ways to sort this out:

1. You/your finance buy her out.

2. The house is sold, mortgage cleared, and both walk away - it appears that if the house was sold, once legals etc are paid, both would probably walk away breaking even.

I know some posters may not agree, but given the circumstances, the history and assuming the valuation is correct, if it were me, I'd go with option 2. It might be better for your fiance to get rid of the baggage associated with this house and both of you buy another house together.

 

[orliemac]

Hi thanks for the advice, it was in court last week (at her request) and the judge put it back as mediation hasnt been tried, he's now arranging that. If he was to buy her out, how much does he have to pay? half the equity? & if he offered this, can she refuse & still force a sale? he's put a lot of work into the house over the last few years & realy loves it, hate to lose it so would like to just buy her out & be done with that connection to her