Expert: Jessica Bryan - 8/7/2007

Question
I am a single mom of two boys for the past 7 years i have been dating but not residing with the same man. We decided to purchase a home together. I was going to back out but he agreed to sign a unmarried joint tenancy contract. His credit would not qualify him for the loan without me,and i was not willing to be a co-signer. I am paying for my mobile home myself with no co-signer. I did agree to purchase with him if he siged the contract. All the way to closing he agreed. After closing i asked the lawyer to notorise our contract then he sdecide he wanted his lawyer to read it first. I am only trying to protect all involved mostly his son and my boys who are not ours together. And of course myself. I have an exellant credit rating and dont want any of his previous debts or any future to jepordize my kids home or mine. Is there an answer?

Answer
Dear Robin;
I think that you have every right to want to protect the boys as well as yourself in this type of arrangement.  A person with bad credit can really hurt you and your future purchasing power.  If this man decided that he wanted to have his lawyer look over the contract before it was official then he is also being cautious.  Both of you need to remember that you are entering into an arrangement with legal repercussions if there is a problem and both of you need to be clear on what your  legal responsibilities are.  Since you are not married the loan and the payment responsibilities are to be very clear in the event that you 'break up' with each other and one of you decides to move out thus leaving the other with the full mortgage. Worse yet, you might be making payments on the home even though you no longer live there and are legally liable for the mortgage and any default in payment. Joint tenancy is only the description of ownership but does not necessarily imply that both are responsible for the loan.  That is why the attorney needs to advise you and discuss your options; explaining clearly who is responsible in the event of a 'parting of ways' and who will get the ownership of the home.

Ask lots of questions and discuss thoroughly before proceeding.

Good luck and best wishes,
Jessica Bryan