Joint ownership

[Dave H]

Jurisdiction

Pennsylvania

My wife is on the title and mortgage of a house with her parents. We no longer live there and her parents are renting it out. Should we be receiving part of the profits? We lived in the house for 5 years and made many improvements while there.

 

[adjusterjack]

That's between your wife and her parents.

There's no law that says she should or shouldn't get a share of the income.

 

[zddoodah]

My wife is on the title and mortgage of a house with her parents.

And you're not on title. Correct? How and when did she acquire her interest in the property?

Should we be receiving part of the profits?

We? Probably not. Her? Probably. Depends on how you answer the above questions.

We lived in the house for 5 years and made many improvements while there.

Ok.

 

[Dave H]

And you're not on title. Correct? How and when did she acquire her interest in the property?



We? Probably not. Her? Probably. Depends on how you answer the above questions.



Ok.

It was purchased before she started college. I am not on the title. She and I lived there while she was in college, when she graduated her younger brother lived in the house while he went to college. A great alternative to room and board. They put her name on the deed and mortgage to "help" her credit. As it turns out they only hurt her credit by paying the mortgage late every month for years. Now they are renting to another person and we are only getting hurt by the situation. Her credit has taken a massive hit and we can not get a mortgage because of this.

 

[Dave H]

That's between your wife and her parents.

There's no law that says she should or shouldn't get a share of the income.

If she is a part owner she should have a vested interest into what happens with the house, correct? Her name is on the deed and money is being made, but none is going to one of the owners.

 

[zddoodah]

It was purchased before she started college. I am not on the title. She and I lived there while she was in college, when she graduated her younger brother lived in the house while he went to college. A great alternative to room and board. They put her name on the deed and mortgage to "help" her credit. As it turns out they only hurt her credit by paying the mortgage late every month for years. Now they are renting to another person and we are only getting hurt by the situation. Her credit has taken a massive hit and we can not get a mortgage because of this.

I should have been more clear with my question. What I was trying to ascertain was whether she acquired her interest before or after you were married. Based on what you wrote here, I'll assume it was before, which means you have no legal interest.

As far as them putting her name on the deed, that has nothing to do with her credit, and they could not have put her name on the mortgage without her signing off on it, so she, not "they" put her name on the mortgage. Why is "[h]er credit . . . tak[ing] a massive hit"? Are her parents not paying the mortgage?

I disagree with "adjusterjack" that "no law that says she should or shouldn't get a share of the [rental] income." Joint owners of real property are obligated to account to each other for profits and share them equally. Here's the rub, of course: Is she willing to sue her parents? Unless she is, then this is simply something for her and them to sort out between themselves.

 

[adjusterjack]

If she is a part owner she should have a vested interest into what happens with the house, correct? Her name is on the deed and money is being made, but none is going to one of the owners.

Again, that's between her and her parents.

If she doesn't like what is going on she can do one of the following:

1 - Sell her share to her parents if her parents are willing to come up with cash for her.

2 - Quitclaim her share to her parents, for free, and be out from under. Eventually, her credit score might improve after a few years.

3 - File a "partition action" (google it) in court to force the sale of the property. There are pros and cons to that.

 

[Dave H]

I should have been more clear with my question. What I was trying to ascertain was whether she acquired her interest before or after you were married. Based on what you wrote here, I'll assume it was before, which means you have no legal interest.

As far as them putting her name on the deed, that has nothing to do with her credit, and they could not have put her name on the mortgage without her signing off on it, so she, not "they" put her name on the mortgage. Why is "[h]er credit . . . tak[ing] a massive hit"? Are her parents not paying the mortgage?

I disagree with "adjusterjack" that "no law that says she should or shouldn't get a share of the [rental] income." Joint owners of real property are obligated to account to each other for profits and share them equally. Here's the rub, of course: Is she willing to sue her parents? Unless she is, then this is simply something for her and them to sort out between themselves.

Yes it was before the marriage so I know I have no legal interest. I'm looking into this for her. She did agree to have her name on the mortgage so she could start developing credit. We found out that her parents pay the mortgage late every month since the house was purchased. When she got a student loan from the same company she was able to see the payments. Always on the very last day of the grace period after the due date. She is willing to sue them. We want to remove them from our lives completely and need to figure out how.

 

[adjusterjack]

She is willing to sue them. We want to remove them from our lives completely and need to figure out how.

Lawsuits are expensive. Count on spending thousands on a lawyer.

She can sue for a share of the income but that doesn't solve the problem of the mortgage. The only way that gets solved is a partition action that forces the sale of the property and gets the mortgage paid off.

As for the house you are living in, again, the solution is to find another place to live.

 

[zddoodah]

She is willing to sue them. We want to remove them from our lives completely and need to figure out how.

Before she goes there, has she asked her parents to refinance the mortgage in their name only in exchange for conveying her interest in the property to them?

She can sue for a share of the income but that doesn't solve the problem of the mortgage. The only way that gets solved is a partition action that forces the sale of the property and gets the mortgage paid off.

I agree, with a minor caveat. A sale pursuant to a partition action may not result in full fair market value, so it might not result in the mortgage being fully paid off.

 

[Dave H]

Before she goes there, has she asked her parents to refinance the mortgage in their name only in exchange for conveying her interest in the property to them?

Yes she has. They refused. Multiple times.

 

[zddoodah]

Then her next step is to talk with an attorney.

 

[Dave H]

Then her next step is to talk with an attorney.

That's what I was figuring. Thank you all for the help!