Unmarried Couples Buying Houses Together
Over the past decade, thousands of unmarried couples purchased homes together. While they may have started off with high hopes, many of them broke up and decided to go their separate ways. However, what happens to the house, now that the two people are no longer together? Is there any way for a person to get their money back from their ex-boyfriend or ex-girlfriend?
Allow me to use an example to help explain this.
Amanda and Tony are a young, unmarried couple who live in Minneapolis. Back in 2008, after dating for a couple of years, they decided to move in together and purchase a townhouse.
The End Of A Relationship
Over the past year, Amanda and Tony have been seeing the world differently, and their relationship is on the rocks. Last winter, Tony moved out of their townhouse to live with his brother and think things over. After some long talks, Tony realized that he needed to make some changes in his life and break up with Amanda.
Now, Tony would like to get his money back on the house he and Amanda bought over 4 years ago. After all, it was he who had paid a sizable down payment with money he had saved diligently working two jobs. On top of that, he had contributed about 65% of the payments, as compared to a 35% contribution from Amanda.
Amanda has a different idea on this matter, however. She doesn’t want Tony to sell the house because she is comfortable and has been using two of the rooms for storage and doesn’t want to move all the items. On top of that, she has been enjoying a relatively low housing payment since Tony was paying more of the share.
Getting Money From The House
How can Tony get his money back from the townhouse that he and Amanda purchased together?
One answer is a partition.
A partition is a lawsuit that a co-owner can begin to require the other co-owner(s) to divide the property or (if it can’t be reasonably cut up) then the court may require the co-owners to sell the property and divide the proceeds.
Bill Peterson is a Minnesota Estate Planning Attorney with over 40 years of experience as a lawyer. He can help you plan for the future by creating a Minnesota Estate Plan. For more information, please visit http://www.mnestateplan.com or call toll free at 952-641-7312.
The contents of this article are for information only and is not to be interpreted as legal advice. For personal legal advice you should consult with an attorney who is experienced in probate law or estate planning.