Shared ownership of a horse, is it possible?

Question

My riding instructor trains and sells horses for people. She got a horse that I really like, and she likes him a lot, too.
The problem is he is for sale, and too expensive for either of us to buy.
Is it possible to share ownership with another person? That way we could each pay 50%, and that is affordable.
I would probably save up to buy him completely. I just don't have enough money at the moment, and his owner wants him sold fast.

Answer 1

It is possible, BUT...
I would advise you both sit down and really talk it through carefully before you make any decisions as you would not only be splitting the ownership of the horse but also all responsibility, work etc as well.
You would need to get an agreement drawn up really ( which would kind of take the fun out of it a bit but it's better to be safe than sorry.)
You need to think about vet fees, insurance , boarding, what work you each want to do with the horse, which jobs you need to allocate ( mucking out., early feeding etc) and agree on which days you have - also this needs to be flexible so you can swap days if necessary.
All in all quite a complicated arrangement.
Why not talk to the owner and ask if they would accept payment in installments ?

Answer 2

If both parties agree to it, sure. You have to be prepared to share responsibilities and work around each others schedules. Have to set up certain days for each of you to have access to what you want to do with the horse. (this could become a sticky situation though and a friendship could be lost if you start disagreeing with the use, handling, or care of the horse. The other person may not want to dish out money to share a horse that you intend on buying fully in the end, she's not really getting anything out of that deal. Maybe you could ask for a loan and pay her back with interest??? This too could end a friendship if you were to fail on any part of your agreement. Have you talked to the owner of the horse and see if you could 1/2 down and make payments on the rest? Probably the best option, outcome wise. Or, maybe you just have to accept that this horse just wasn't meant for either of you at this point in your lives.

Answer 3

You should be able to do it, but before you do, you have to work out an agreement between the two of you about:

-how you will split costs,
-decide who gets to ride when,
-whether one or the other can use the horse for trail riding, competition, or any other uses besides going around the corral,
-who pays entrance fees for any competition,
- who gets the prize money, credit, etc from anything like that,
who pays vet fees for injuries that occurred when you were trail riding (for an injury for which only one of you is responsible, for example),
whether either of you can take the horse someplace, say out of state, without the other one's permission,
-who pays for tack, hardware, etc, or do you each provide your own,
what kind of care the animal will get - specifics about food, regular vet care, etc,
- if either of you can loan out the horse for use by friends, and how this would work, and who's responsible for injuries, damage, etc,
-whether or not both of you will carry any liability insurance on the horse, in case it gets sick and infects other horses, or gets loose and does damage to someone's property, or one or the other of you (or a friend) is injured while riding the horse,
-if your horse is a mare and gives birth to a colt, how do you work out the ownership of it.
-if your horse is a mare, should it be bred at all?
-if your horse is a stallion, how do you split stud fees - and expenses?
-how you will set a value on the horse when one of you wants to buy the other one out.

Basically, this will work out to a contract where you try to describe in writing all the conditions that you can think of that may come up. It's been years since we owned horses, so I can't imagine all the possibilities. If you can't, you need to talk to someone with lots of experience in this area, and try to list them all and figure out a way to handle them.

Answer 4

You could always lease a horse, which is basically doing that, depending on the lease you do. Regular lease you pay for using the horse every month plus any other charges the owner needs (farrier, vet, feed, etc.) or a free lease where there is no monthly fee, you just have to pay for the basics.
Leases vary, in some you might not have to pay for anything, or you might have to pay for everything. I ride a neighbors horse and buy various supplys (blankets, boots, etc.) and it works great for me.

Answer 5

Its definatly possible. I almost did that for my first horse, i was going to share a pony with a friend.
Though it is possible you have to remember theres board to pay for, vet bills, farrier etc etc. You can just go buy a horse and be set. I mean theres other bills to be payed for rather than just buying the horse.
Although if you can make that possible another thing to think about it you guys would be sharing it 50/50 which doesnt mean hes completely yours. You would have to set days to where one would ride and one wouldnt come out or something like that. Also what if when you want to pay him off she doesnt want to give him up? Remember it would be 50/50 so everything wouldnt revolve around you and what you want. Legally he would be partially hers. If she doesnt want to give him up when your ready to pay him off she doesnt have to let you.

Theres probably someone who can afford him and love him just as much as you do and can afford everything

Answer 6

ask your instructor if their is anyone else interested in buying the horse and if you could talk to them and see if you can work something out. you want to be careful who you own the horse with though. make sure you are agreed (in wrighting) on who pays what bills and stuff like that. it would probably be easiest if you own it with a family member or a friend but still, ask your instructor.

Answer 7

regrettably there is no longer a rapid restoration, horses are an extremely high priced pastime, via the years ive tried each little thing to cut back down expenditures and it purely would not artwork, the only component i could advise is protecting a horse on finished prove (in applicable fields) as then you certainly have not have been given stable fees bedding to purchase and so on

Answer 8

yes it is! the owner of the barn where i used to board shares ownership with most of the barn's horses and the stallions.