Buying out an ex-girlfriend?

A reader from London is trying to buy out his ex-girlfriend – but is unsure how hard it is.

Drawing on years of experience, mortgage adviser Katie Tucker - technical manager at fee-free whole of market mortgage broker charcol.co.uk - takes him through the situation and what it means for his finances.

Dan from London asks:

I bought a house with my partner just under a year ago. We signed up to a mortgage in our joint names at the time.

My now ex-girlfriend has moved out and I am in the process of buying her out.
Will the mortgage company allow me to simply take her off of the current mortgage and continue at the same rate (perhaps with a guarantor) or will I be required to remortgage?

Katie replies:

Hi Dan,

You should be able to continue with your current deal if your affordability meets the criteria alone, but if you need a guarantor it is unlikely that you will have access to normal rates, and they may have to move you to a new deal.

This is the case regardless of whether you stay with your existing lender or remortgage elsewhere.

Your lender can't penalise you for these things happening in life, so do give them a call and ask what they would offer you. Also ask what the penalty would be for remortgaging away. If you have two bedrooms, you might find that your ex-girlfriend does not want to buy immediately, and lets you rent out the spare room to pay half the mortgage and make an income for her.

Regards,

Katie.

If you have a question for Katie, go to the myfinances.co.uk Ask the Mortgage Expert section.

For more information on the issues discussed here, go to mortgage broker charcol.co.uk or call 0800 358 5560.

Charcol Limited is authorised and regulated by the Financial Services Authority (FSA registration number 427339). The FSA does not regulate credit cards, personal loans or some investment mortgage contracts. Some buy-to-let mortgages are regulated by the Consumer Credit Act (CCA).