advice needed , does ex-FI have any rights?

Question

I was engaged and he cheated on me. Now I need some advice. I bought a house last August. The house and all bills are in my name only. His (ex-fi's) dad did give us money to help with a downpayment, (about 6k) but he signed one of those gift forms, saying that it was a gift to me (FI never mentioned)., and that it was a gift with no strings attached and that it is not expected that I pay him back. We had to submit this form to the mortgage broker. The monthly payment is taken out of a joint account. (I think I am going to change this and have it taken out of a account that only I have). Does fi have any right to the house, because everything is only in my name? I am 100% sure that his name is not on anything. He has very bad credit. He thinks he has rights, I of course say no because his name is not on anything. I am not sure if anyone was ever in a situatioon like this. We are NOT married, and each of us made deposits into this joint account to pay all HH bills, as well as any bills FI had (his carpayment, student loans) Whle I kept a different account to pay my bills (CC, cell phone ect).

I dont think that the property is considered marital property, because we are not married, and in my state there is no common law marriage. I view what he has paid toward the bills, as his rent and living expenses (his rent was more then what is had paid toward the mortgage). Additioanlly, he has some anger issues and have done some damage to the house- drywall holes and dents, also he has broken a door frame, while busting it open becuase I liked myself in the bedroom to get away from him. I would guess the dame he did will cost at least 4k to fix (have to repaint walls, and get a new door frame).

If he would have rights, does that mean that he has to still pay all bills? My though proscess is that because my name is on everything he has the right to pick up and leave at anytime, and I would have no right to go after him for utilities or "rent". Give your honest opinions, I live in Pa, if that helps.

Answer 1

The only good news is that you haven't married him yet.

About the only two entities that don't have rights are a) the bank because they have all sorts of paperwork showing that they loaned only you the money and b) the dad because he signed paperwork showing that he freely made a gift to you.

You have a moral, but not legal, obligation to pay the father back.

However, your boyfriend *can* sue you. He can argue a concept called "equitable ownership." The burden is on him, but your actions so far truly help his case.

Your boyfriend can show that a) he doesn't have a rental agreement and he has full use of the house (and I doubt you were showing this as income on your tax returns!); b) his father gave you the gift because you were engaged to him; c) the reason his name isn't on the title is because his credit was bad; d) he makes deposits to the joint checking account out of which you are paying the mortgage (which includes the interest and property taxes). The fact that you needed the gift from his dad to make the downpayment shows that you weren't really able to buy the house by yourself. I suspect that without his help, you would be hurting in making the house payments--banks routinely let people borrow more than they can afford to repay.

Answer 2

If it's all in your name, that's for better or worse. Yes, he can leave anytime he wants and he doesn't have to pay you anything. He has no legal responsibility to that house, the bills or you. You say you are 100% sure his name isn't on ANYTHING. I hope you are.
YOU view what he has paid as rent and his living expenses but the courts won't, because he wasn't your roommate. You had no roommate agreement; you were co-habitating. Therefore, if the relationship dissolves, so do his responsibilities to that property. If he doesn't live there anymore, his name is on nothing and he's not with you anymore, I highly doubt the court would make him pay you anything. Why would they? It's your house, your electricity, your cable, your phone. You might as well get used to the idea of paying it all yourself. That's probably what's going to happen. It's sh!tty because he cheated on you, but the best you could probably get would be his share of bills if he were to leave in the middle of a month and really, I'm not even sure they'd give you that. And if I were you, I'd end that joint account-thing as soon as possible. Like tomorrow. If he can prove he's been paying the mortgage, that could actually give him leverage against you in court. Not only that but he could take out any money you put in there and it would not be considered stealing. He has access to the money you need to pay your mortgage. Don't be a fool and allow that to go on.
And honestly, even though the dad said it was a gift, I'm sure that now that you guys have broken up he'd accept repayment. And since you HAVE broken up, it would seem fair that you repay him. Legally you don't have to but it is something to think about. He didn't HAVE to give you the money.

Answer 3

From a legal perspective he has no rights in the property since his name is on nothing and you were not married when you bought the house. Conversely he has no obligation to you for payment of any bills, mortgage, etc.

Given that he as done damage to the house you could either sue him for that or just consider what his Dad put up and any money he contributed to the household expenses as a wash and walk away. Avoiding any contact with an abusive individual is probably wise. You might also consider a restraining order or protective order given his record of violent behavior.

I would get off of that joint account ASAP and switch the mortgage payments over to your own separate account ASAP. That's a smart move on your part.

A 30 minute consult with a local attorney would be a good idea and will probably ally any fears you may have.

Answer 4

Are you looking for a legal answer, or an opinion on what's fair?

Legally, if his name isn't on anything, he doesn't have a right to it. And his payments while he lived there could be logically looked at as living expenses.

If you wanted to be totally "fair", you could give him back the $6K his dad kicked in for the down payment, plus a share of the equity if there is any beyond $6K. But with his cheating, you probably aren't very interested in doing that. And it would seem "fair" to deduct the cost of fixing the damage from whatever you would otherwise give him.

I'd get rid of the joint account asap. I assume he isn't putting money into it any more. If you put money in to cover the mortgage, he could take the money out before the mortgage company did, and you'd be left still owing it.

The property isn't marital property. You were never married to him.

Answer 5

No, he has no rights if all the bills are in your name.. but since it came from a joint checking account he does have the right to go to small claims court about this. and the part about his father and the gift monies that was just for the mortgage co. to know that you didn't have the $ but yoiu got it and your not in debt to pay it back, it means nothing. I live in va and went thru the same thing but his name was on the mortgage so he got half and we sold the house had his name not been on the mortgage then he would not have had anything he would have been SOL.... Now the next thing you need to ask is his name on the deed? if so like i said small claims court. and if you want to split fairly you may refinace and give him a lil because thats not cool he has helped you and so did his family.