Cohabitation Contracts
What is a cohabitation contract?
A cohabitation contract is what some people call a living together agreement, and what a couple can do there is to set out their agreement about how property is owned and who owns what.
Are cohabitation agreements legally enforceable?
Cohabitation agreements are not automatically enforceable, but what they do is to give evidence of the intention of the cohabiting couple, which can be crucial when trying to resolve things following separation.
Should we keep a record of everything we buy for our house?
One should keep a record of the major items of expense, the major improvements, the mortgage payments and any capital injections, but not every nut and bolt and washer.
If my long term partner owns the house, do I have any rights over it?
They are the legal owner on the register. Then maybe a deed of trust that you and your partner or former partner have executed between you, which actually sets out what the real ownership, is behind those deeds. If you can't do that you're really left to look at quiet complex historic trust principles much of which comes down to direct contributions about who put what into the house. This is why cohabitation contracts or living together agreements are very important because they can show the intention that the couple had which is something that a court might be trying to establish after the fact. And it may also show how they dealt with their relationship and who contributed to what whether when they bought the property or when they continued to live in it.
Who owns the possessions in the house?
The principles are exactly the same for possessions as they are for real property houses or flats.
