Changing My Will To Protect My Home

A question about : Changing My Will To Protect My Home

Hi,

I'm hoping someone maybe able to offer some advice.

I bought a house with a friend/ex-partner, everything is in joint names and it was bought that we both own 50% each.

At the time we verbally agreed that should anything happen to one of us the house would automatically go to the other as we both invested money and time into the house and no one else should any financial interest in our home.

However, although we both live in the house ( we live our own separate lives as friends, not as a couple) due to various reasons and differences my ex partner has decided to re write his will and leave his 50% to his grown up children.

As you can imagine I'm not happy about this as my will leaves my 50% to him, so obviously I feel the need to change it. I have also cancelled my life insurance which would have covered the mortgage.

However I am concerned that now my home will always be at risk of being sold under my nose should anything happen to him.

If anything happened to him would I have the option to buy his 50% by re mortgaging so that his children have their share of what he wanted them to have.

Please note -I don't have anything against his children at all, I'm just annoyed as I would have never agreed to buy the house if there was a chance of me losing it or having to sell it.

I earn enough now that I could take on the mortgage myself, so I'm thinking that perhaps I should suggest that I try and buy him out or that we sell and split any profit but I don't think he would agree to letting me buy him out, does that mean Id have to let my home be sold despite me being able to afford it on my own?

Apologies if this is has gone a bit off topic. I realise I should seek legal advise but any advise/thoughts would be appreciated.

Just wondered where I stand now he is changing his will?

Many thanks

Best answers:

• You'll still own half the house, so it will be impossible to sell it from under your nose. And the other half of the house will be a very unattractive proposition.
  However it won't make for a very happy situation if the children want to sell it and move on but you could offer to buy them out at that points.
• Maybe the answer is to sell it all now and both take your share and separate? Have you spoken to him about his plan and if so,what does he say?
• Either you or your ex could force a sale at any time, and there is no reason why one of you could not buy the other out, rather than sell the property to a third party.
  IF you both want to stay put for now, it would be possible to agree terms which would protect you both, and preserve the house for your respective heirs: you could each make provision in your wills directing your respective executors to give the other 'first refusal' to buy out the estate, and could also provide both in your wills and in a formal trust deed, for the survivor be given (say) 6 or 12 months to buy the property (subject to paying all outgoings), following the first death.
  You could also look into insuring your ex's life to ensure that you will have the finds buy out the estate if he were to die before you, or setting up some other form of savings, bearing in mind that your mortgage capacity will reduce over time.
• How have you bought it joint tenants or tenants in common.
  If joint has either of you broken the tenancy yet?
• Hi again,
  Many thanks for the replies.
  We bought the house as tenants in common with a 50/50 share. does this have any bearing on me changing my will to ensure that my half is left to whoever I want it to go to?
  Just to note, I don't have any children but I do have a sibling and two nephews who I would want to leave my half of the house too. I didn't before but that's only because Id made other financial arrangements.
  Also I'm in my late forties so am I likely to have difficulties getting a mortgage on my own? My ex is 50 so would he be likely to have the same issues in getting a another mortgage?
  TBagpuss - thank you for your suggestions I didn't realise I could set up life insurance under my ex's name? I would do this definitely if possible purely to protect myself financially.
  Its a shame as everything was verbally agreed well before we completed on the house and now its like hes lost the plot.
  Thank you