Hi all

As some of you may recall I asked a question before regarding a house and relationship breakdown. I have sought legal advice but because I am in Scotland some of it is confusing and I wondered if anyone has personal experience.

My ex partner and I have lived in my house for 14 years - I am the sole owner and am the only person on the title deeds. I have always paid the mortgage and all household related goods / shopping etc and him the bills (which was much less than the mortgage).

the relationship has broken beyond repair, so much so that I have been staying away from the house. When I tried to return to the house whilst he was out, I found that he had locked an internal door (which had never been locked in the whole 14 years) - he took (or now claims hid) the key - anyway after my 3rd visit of not getting in I had to cut through the lock to gain access.

Given I am the owner of the house and always have been and we are not married or in any civil partnership, I am furious to say the least.

I have written o him to ask him to vacate the house, taking his belonging by January and he is now refusing!

He wishes to claim on the house equity as he said he has contributed to household expenses.

I just want him out of my house - can I force him to leave and if he does not, where do I stand?

You really need to talk to a solicitor. There are many factors that can affect the situation. Speak to a solicitor and ask them to write a letter demanding he leave. The few hundred pounds a solicitor will cost could save you tens of thousands of pounds down the line.

Take this from somebody that knows..

Relationship breakdown is a minefield.

I suggest you speak to a solicitor. They are not all sharks, you need to find the right one..

Good luck

I think it depends...on the advice you get!

One couple, unmarried - the house was in her name but, she had never paid the mortgage - partner did. They split proceeds 50/50 and I think that was fair.

Another couple, unmarried - house in his name, he paid the mortgage but, she worked the whole time and paid for other stuff (bills, shopping, house improvements) she walked away with absolutely nothing, which I thought was terrible.

One thing is for certain, I really think there needs to be some clarity in these situations as it does seem to depend situation to situation, and on how good your solicitor is.

I don't think you will be short of sympathy here, but what you need is solid advice and that needs a solicitor.
Don't worry if it is confusing, maybe concentrate on what outcome you want and don't worry about all the detail.

Him not leaving the house is a c*nts trick. Technically he is a tenant with no written contract. Give him a 30 day Notice to Vacate and if he isn't out by then, change the locks whilst he is out.

Then again, maybe speak to a solicitor first to see if that course of action is suggested!

Absolutely speak to a solictor, the 14 years living together could well be classed as common-law marriage though that may be different in Scotland

I paid my Ex of 10 years a fortune just to go away

Ask your legal advisor to explain it again then - that's why you are paying them.


Personal experiences of others won't help you.

Every set of circumstances are different as the earlier responses on this thread demonstrate, and I imagine the same can be said for those given in your previous thread.

The fact that you are located in Scotand adds a further layer of complexity and may well render any comments made by those who reside in England irrelevant.

You need legal advice, don't change any locks. Just be whiter than white.

He is not just a tenant! If he's contributed to the household expenses and you were living together as partners, he may well have a beneficial interest in the property - and his response suggests that this is how he sees it. As others have said, you really do need proper legal advice.

Here is citizens advice Scotland advice https://www.citizensadvice.org.uk/sc...differences-s/

"A partner who is not a joint owner will have no right to remain in the home if the owner withdraws permission for them to stay. They can apply to the court for the right to remain in the home.

A partner who is not the owner cannot stop the sale of the house but may apply for limited right to remain in the home. They are not entitled to a share of the proceeds unless they are a joint owner or can show they made a financial contribution."

As other posters have said please get legal advice.

In Scotland, even if you are the sole owner of the property, you cannot legally exclude the your partner from occupation. However, if you do, your partner must get a court order to force you to re-admit them.

Similarly only a court can deprive your partner of the right to live in the property before the divorce arrangements are finalised.

You could consult Citizens Advice but if the two of you are unable to agree on how to divide the assets then you will need to ask a court to do it and that almost certainly means that you will need a solicitor's help.

Solicitor needed right now. Do nothing until you have sought proper legal advice.

Advice on here can be conflicting - for example, there is no such thing as common-law marriage in Scotland - from what I remember of your last thread your ex-partner is same-sex, no legal civil partnership, no children. He may have paid bills but also has lived rent-free for 14 years as you owned the property before he moved in. But I am not a legal professional and they are the only ones who can help you. Best of luck.

There's no such thing as common law marriage in England either!

OP, not sure about the comments about the situation being more "complicated" because it's in Scotland - basically the answer is much the same as it would be in England i.e. you're entitled to live there because it's your house, but the law gives some (limited) occupancy rights to your partner, so you may have to put up with each other for a bit longer.

As above, seek legal advice (though you mention you've already sought advice, so not sure why you've come here?).

I suppose if he's going to have to pay rent when he moves out he'll be in no rush to do so ? Is it not as simple as calling the Police and saying you want him out of your house ?

No - partners or spouses can't just be kicked out, and he's certainly not committing a criminal offence by continuing to stay there.

but I don't think he has any legal claim on the property, he may think he does though.

He maybe staying under what is called Home Rights.

You can have Home Rights without being on the deeds as long as the owner dosent already own the place with anyone else.

You would need a court order to get him out.

http://www.d-w-s.co.uk/protecting-ho...-law-act-1996/

https://www.landregistryservices.com...hts-notice.asp
Registering a Home Rights Notice-Land Registry

You don't need to be on the deeds to make a claim either on the property or compensation to rent elsewhere.

The links aren't all that helpful as we're talking about Scotland rather than England, but broadly speaking similar principles apply.


Or at the very least, to have protection against being summarily kicked out of the matrimonial home before you and your partner have had a chance to sort out properly what your sleeping arrangements ought to be.

Under Scottish law it comes under Occupancy Rights, similar thing.

You can apply to the Sheriff Court to have occupancy rights granted to you.
The court will look at:
How long you have been together
Your and your partners financial resources
If you or your partner have any other accommodation
Your and that of your partners behaviour

You can assert your right to stay there if you have made a financial contribution to the home
Or if you have paid towards improvements or repairs to be carried out

If you have been in a civil partnership since after December 2005, you have automatic occupancy rights.

The OP can get advise from citizens advice. But considering his home is at stake, I would think a lawyers help would be needed to oppose any claims made on the property made by his former partner.
Other than that, he could watch out for an open window and climb in it, then change locks, then maybe seek injunction after calling police if he comes bashing the door to "harass".
OP will know when his partner is likely to be out, so he can try & gain access & swiftly change the locks. (A neighbour of mine did this )
When he starts creating after he cant get his key in to open door, Police can then be called to send him on his way...After showing them the deeds. Then injunction can be got next morning with crime ref that police were involved.

heres the accurate info about property rights in scotland from citizens advice, he has no right to be there but you may have to pay him some cash to go away due to him contributing through paying the bills, what you should be doing is working out what you have put into the house and what he has put into the house and then speaking to a lawyer and making sure you know your options

"If you and your partner live in owner occupied property and only one of you is the owner of the property only the owner has the right to stay in your home.

If the owner wants you to leave, you have to go unless a court has given you rights to stay. If you have children a court might give you rights for 6 months to stay in the home even when you don't own it. You will need more advice about this.

If you don't have children, you may be able to claim a financial interest in your home if you can show you contributed financially by, for example, paying for improvements or towards mortgage repayments. If you have a financial interest in your home you might be able to make a claim to recover money paid towards the home. You'll need to get legal advice about this. You could get help with legal costs."

If you do own your home jointly with your partner and you decide to leave, you should take steps to protect your right to go back there if you want to. You should try and agree about whether the home should be sold. One joint owner can go to court to try and force the sale of the property. You will need to get legal advice about this. You could get help with legal costs.

https://www.citizensadvice.org.uk/sc...a-relationship

That depends. If as op say,s, he has shown an interest in the property due to contributing financially...The court can give him rights over the property.
The owner wasn't a landlord. They were in a relationship & shared the home.
His partner has most likely already sought legal advice, knows his rights, hence he,s still there.
www.gov.scot/Publications/2006/04/27135238/1

Thanks for the comments so far. It is a bit of a nightmare to be honest.

I wonder what would happen if I decided to sell the property as the law states that my ex cannot prevent me from selling.

I'm not being unreasonable but was very angry that I had to physically break into my own home to get things I needed and he had locked an internal door preventing me from getting in.

He has also set up cameras inside the house in "his bedroom" - so I am watched both from the several outside cameras and now the inside one(s).

Is paying bills actually contributing to the house? It's not like he's paid for redecoration/modifications etc. I'm assuming when the OP says bills they mean gas, telephone etc?