Joint mortgage - removal of name

[confusedotcom]

Hi all,
My wife and I seperated 1 year ago. She moved out of the marital home, I stayed. She stopped contributing to the mortgage. I paid it on time. We divorced in March 2010. I now wish to move on. We have failed to sell. So, she has suggested that she moves back into the house as I move out. The mortgage is joint in both names. There is minimal equity in the house (mortgage £220k, valued at £225K).
She is in the process of applying to take the mortgage on in her own name, which may or may not complete prior to Nov 20th when she is looking to move in.
How on earth do I ensure that she moves in, relieves me of the mortgage, but doesnt stitch me up by moving in, keeping the mortgage in joint names and then having me at her back and call for years to come?
Thank you for your help.

[sara3]

she will have to re-mortgage. can she borrow that amount in her own name?

[ummmm]

Make sure the mortgage aspect is sorted before she moves back in.

[confusedotcom]

ummmm - -that is what scares me, she could move in then refuse to pay, but Im desperate to offload the property.

sara3 - its a huge mortgage on her £30k salary (which she would never get) but I suspect someone is assisting her

Thanks guys,

[ummmm]

Is she likely to refuse to pay?

[sara3]

that's some huge assistance!

personally I wouldn't move until I'd seen the paperwork, and confirmed with the bank that the direct debit has been stopped.

best of luck.

[ummmm]

Have you thought about renting the property out if you can't sell?

[confusedotcom]

Thank you,

yes, I think Bank of Dad is helping.

She's a slippery customer, I dont trust her and feel that she could well move back in and decide not to pay, meaning that I, as joint mortgaggee would either go along with repossession or pay the mortgage whilst she sits tight in the house. Either way is undesirable! I just want rid of her and the house.

[ummmm]

Try to avoid her moving back in then although legally I don't think you can do that if it's in her name.

What about renting the other rooms out...

[confusedotcom]

ummmm - I am thinking that that is the only way forwards, thank you

[ummmm]

Do it asap and she doesn't have a room to move back into. I use to rent rooms out....a small ad in the local paper and I was inundated with calls. The rooms weren't cheap either....

[ummmm]

If you do make sure you have a rent agreement so she can't come in a chuck them out..

[confusedotcom]

ummm - thats interesting. The house is a large 4 bed. I had considered renting one or maybe two rooms out (it is half a mile from a hospital too), but the house is now completely empty. Did you rent them furnished? Did you draw up a 6 month shorthold tenancy agreement, or does it require something other?

[ummmm]

My house had three floors. On the top floor was two bedrooms and a bathroom. I ended up renting it as a kind of flat in the end. Furnished for £450 a month...I didn't have a rent agreement for that. I would if I was you though. You can get them from WHSmith....That's what I did when I rented a room to my cousin who needed housing benefit as he was a full time student. The council accept them so I think they are good enough. When you get a rental agreement it's a contract so you can't just kick them out. So I'd do it on a 6 months tenancy just in case your situation changes.

[bednobs]

i don't understand why joint assets weren't sorted out prior to the divorce becoming final?

[boxtops]

Nor do I, to be honest, bednobs. When I left No. 1 he remortgaged to buy me out (as I was owed some, due to what I'd paid in) that was the end of it, my name came off the mortgage and I had no further interest in it.