Homeowners not married seperating.

littleandoften

Take this situation,a guy and girl have been living with each other for years have jointly paid a mortage and have a teenage child,there house is worth 170k they have joint account savings of 80k and a mortage of 110k.The reletionship breaks down and the guy wants to get out,can the home be sold before the child is 18if so can the girl be legally forced to sellwhat happens to the savingsany ideas on this thanks.

StillWaters

He must provide for the child. All other things being equal, it would seem fair to buy him out the savings. It would be unlikely a judge would order a sale before the child has finished full time education when there is the means for the party leaving to establish themselves in another home.

littleandoften

Thanks stillwaters.

krd

I would empty the bank account before she can. And run, not walk.

Knowing someone who went through a similar situation. The woman, emptied the bank account - and the judge wouldn't force her to hand any back - and wouldn't consider the money as contributing to support - this all happened in camera. Where the judge can do what he wants, and you can go to jail if you complain or tell anyone about it. The guy I knew had his suspicions she'd been coached into doing so.

Grab the cash - and if you end up in trouble, use the father Ted defence: "the money was simply resting in my account." Or say you gambled it all away. After all, it's your money. And if your money is gone, it's gone

The man can find himself in a situation where he's expected to pay 100% of the mortgage, and have absolutely no right to the house. And she can move the boyfriend in, and have parties. And if her boyfriend is a solicitor, never mind your shirt - they'll take the skin off your back.........And when he spends all the money, he'll be off to do a little "conveyancing" on another relationship. That's their "modus operandi", since the collapse of the property bubble.

blueythebear

krd wrote: »

I would empty the bank account before she can. And run, not walk.

Knowing someone who went through a similar situation. The woman, emptied the bank account - and the judge wouldn't force her to hand any back - and wouldn't consider the money as contributing to support - this all happened in camera. Where the judge can do what he wants, and you can go to jail if you complain or tell anyone about it. The guy I knew had his suspicions she'd been coached into doing so.

Grab the cash - and if you end up in trouble, use the father Ted defence: "the money was simply resting in my account." Or say you gambled it all away. After all, it's your money. And if your money is gone, it's gone

The man can find himself in a situation where he's expected to pay 100% of the mortgage, and have absolutely no right to the house. And she can move the boyfriend in, and have parties. And if her boyfriend is a solicitor, never mind your shirt - they'll take the skin off your back.........And when he spends all the money, he'll be off to do a little "conveyancing" on another relationship. That's their "modus operandi", since the collapse of the property bubble.

I would urge you not to listen to this. Go and see a solicitor for some reasonable and useful advice.

littleandoften

Thanks for everyones input.

krd

blueythebear wrote: »

I would urge you not to listen to this. Go and see a solicitor for some reasonable and useful advice.

Why doesn't he just pile up his money, and any possessions he has, take the shirt off his back and light a big fire.

Be careful with solicitors.......they might charge €14,000 for relationship guidance counselling.

As far as I am aware it is not illegal for a person to empty a joint account - and it's difficult to get the money back if they do. It may be the first piece of advice a solicitor may give a party. Or they might just give a wink, or nudge.

StillWaters

krd, not everyone's separation is like your friend's. Some are reasonable, fair and amicable.

Having said that, it would be prudent to ensure neither party can access the savings, until an agreement is reached.

If at all possible, avoid the legal route, and try to hammer something out between yourselves, either through mediation or on your own. Its when solicitor's letters start flying that things can get protracted and hostile.

krd

StillWaters wrote: »

krd, not everyone's separation is like your friend's. Some are reasonable, fair and amicable.

Things can get very ugly. One separation I witnessed, in court the wife demand custody of the family dog - claiming it was for her children. Her husband was very attached to the dog. As soon as she got her hands on it, she took it to the vet and had it put down. These things can get very ugly.

Having said that, it would be prudent to ensure neither party can access the savings, until an agreement is reached.

How would anyone go about doing that? If one party gets suspicious the other is about to clear out the account, they will launch a pre-emptive strike.

If at all possible, avoid the legal route, and try to hammer something out between yourselves, either through mediation or on your own. Its when solicitor's letters start flying that things can get protracted and hostile.

The most amicable split would be best for all concerned.

Taking the legal route can be an absolute disaster.

blueythebear

krd wrote: »

Why doesn't he just pile up his money, and any possessions he has, take the shirt off his back and light a big fire.

Be careful with solicitors.......they might charge €14,000 for relationship guidance counselling.

As far as I am aware it is not illegal for a person to empty a joint account - and it's difficult to get the money back if they do. It may be the first piece of advice a solicitor may give a party. Or they might just give a wink, or nudge.

It's not illegal to empty a joint bank account, but that starts the whole process off on a bad footing which may end up with the other party going down the legal route. Depending on the circumstnaces, they could then make a claim in equity for their share of the contents of the joint accounts. Before you know it, you're defending an action in the High Court with the associated legal costs, all because you acted rashly without getting proper advice.

Going for an initial consultation with a solicitor costs at a maximum, €100 or if you shop around might be free. It does not necessarily mean that you are going to go to court. You can just get some good advice as to what you can and cannot do in a legal sense and also, can get some advice as to the best way to go about resolving this situation.