Need advice for my brother. Legal/mortgage

[Goofy3]

If anyone has any advice about my brother’s situation please chip in. For context my brother is 52 and these days would most probably be diagnosed with ASD/Aspergers possibly also dyslexia. (Child of the early 1970s so nothing ever diagnosed)

He was very briefly married nearly 25 years ago, but separated after approximately 12 months. Him and his wife at the time had bought a house, she moved out and they subsequently divorced. My brother has never applied to have her name taken off the mortgage. As far as I know he is paying interest only on the loan. They paid around £45,000. (The house is probably worth £150,000 now. It would be worth more, but he hasn’t done any maintenance or improvements.)

I need to know how he should set about getting the house put into his name solely. Also what implications might there be for him if he doesn’t do this, or if he hasn’t got the finances to pay off the loan at the end of its term (coming up soon)
Would his ex wife get a financial benefit if the house has to be sold with her name still attached to the mortgage?

The situation is difficult for me to deal with because I want to help him, but my brother is just burying his head in the sand and refuses to even discuss it. I’m scared he will lose his house through inaction.
We don’t know his ex wife’s full name as she has remarried at least once since she was with my brother.
Am I best to drag him to a solicitor to get some advice?

[Perthite]

I’m sure others will know more than me, but I think what matters most is whose name the house is actually in (title deeds), not whose name is on the mortgage. The names on the mortgage determines who the bank can hold liable to make mortgage repayments and is not necessarily the same as who gets the money if the house is sold.

[Goofy3]

I think both names will be on the deeds. So this would be a job for a solicitor to sort out I presume

[lovemickey]

Really think he needs legal advice. But if both are named on the deeds then I would presume if she wanted to she could make a claim for any profits made, equally I would assume she’s liable for any defaulting of the mortgage as well.

[Bellasmummy]

Should have been sorted as part of the divorce, are you sure it wasn’t?

Definitely best to get proper legal advice.

[shack69]

This is a legal matter and it depends what was agreed in the original divorce if anything.

[TheHughesCrew]

Originally Posted by Bellasmummy

Should have been sorted as part of the divorce, are you sure it wasn’t?

Definitely best to get proper legal advice.

See more...

This.

I think there are 2 parts to a divorce. The 2nd part is the financial settlement.

Definitely need to get advice. Try the CAB as a first stop...

[Bootrip2]

Usually a clean break order is done as part of divorce, can you maybe check to see if that was done?
There may be an advocacy service where he can get advice if he has additional needs.

[daytonababe]

Most solicitors will give a free 1/2 hr , so that might be worth doing ..

[Claudette]

Originally Posted by Goofy3

If anyone has any advice about my brother’s situation please chip in. For context my brother is 52 and these days would most probably be diagnosed with ASD/Aspergers possibly also dyslexia. (Child of the early 1970s so nothing ever diagnosed)

He was very briefly married nearly 25 years ago, but separated after approximately 12 months. Him and his wife at the time had bought a house, she moved out and they subsequently divorced. My brother has never applied to have her name taken off the mortgage. As far as I know he is paying interest only on the loan. They paid around £45,000. (The house is probably worth £150,000 now. It would be worth more, but he hasn’t done any maintenance or improvements.)

I need to know how he should set about getting the house put into his name solely. Also what implications might there be for him if he doesn’t do this, or if he hasn’t got the finances to pay off the loan at the end of its term (coming up soon)
Would his ex wife get a financial benefit if the house has to be sold with her name still attached to the mortgage?

The situation is difficult for me to deal with because I want to help him, but my brother is just burying his head in the sand and refuses to even discuss it. I’m scared he will lose his house through inaction.
We don’t know his ex wife’s full name as she has remarried at least once since she was with my brother.
Am I best to drag him to a solicitor to get some advice?

See more...

The first thing you need to do is separate in your mind the house deeds and the mortgage. They are two separate things, one is an asset the other is a liability. Very often they go hand in hand but they don’t have to and even if they do go hand in hand, they are not the same thing. Having somebody on his mortgage that was not on the house deeds and he would be a very lucky individual.

Anyway to your comments, your brother cannot unilaterally apply to get somebody off the mortgage, or the house deeds for that matter. For the mortgage first of all, this would require a remortgaging process, they would have had to pay off the joint mortgage and then him take out a new mortgage in his sole name. To take her name of the house deeds, would have almost certainly involved solicitors.

I think you/ he needs to clarify what the situation is with the house deeds as well as the mortgage. I would be surprised if a divorce was finalised without taking this account.

I do hope he has not just continued to pay the joint mortgage on a house they jointly own.