During married life, when everything is going well, spouses, civil partners or cohabiting partners generally agree. It is in the event of separation that the situation tends to become complicated. And, the more elements there are in common, the more this is the case (children, furniture, rental accommodation, etc.). In the case of property acquired jointly, the repurchase by one of the members of the couple may be full of unpleasant surprises. It all depends on the financial management of the partners during their life together. Discover the fundamental advice of Estelle Amram, notary in Paris and president of the association of women notaries NotariEllesto protect himself.
Real estate credit: how to protect yourself during married life?
For Estelle Amram, what is decisive in repaying a property loan acquired as a couple is “stick to the proportions declared at the time of acquisition“.
As a notary, “I sometimes see couples who bought at 50% each and where, ultimately, one repaid the loan and the other paid current expenses.“ Gold, “participating in current expenses is a burden that must be shared proportionately by both partners according to their resources. The repayment of the loan must be made up to the participation indicated during the deed of acquisition at the notary.“
Let’s take the example of a couple who have purchased a property for 50% each: “Each of the two must participate in the repayment of the loan to this amount throughout their life together.“. This allows “to retain their share of ownership of the acquired real estate and thereby mastering your economic independence“, insists Estelle. This will reduce financial inequalities, particularly between women and men, making it possible to maintain their proportion of ownership for each.
How is the redemption of shares in real estate calculated?
This respect for repayment of the loan takes on its full meaning in the event of separation of the couple if one of the two wishes to keep the property and therefore buy back the other’s share. The notary will question the couple to find out if the loan has been repaid up to the proportions indicated in the deed of acquisition. If this is not the case, either the couple agrees amicably on maintaining the indicated proportions, or, if one of the members requests a readjustment, each partner must provide proof of payment of their share in the repayment of the loan.
To determine the amount that the person who keeps the property pays to the other – the balance -, the notary will “take stock of what each spouse or partner has actually paid on the credit” and perform A rebalancing proportional to each person’s reimbursement. If a person has repaid a part of the loan greater than the proportion indicated in the notarial deed, they will benefit from a larger sum when sharing.
What supporting documents can be used to prove the distribution of expenses?
To justify unequal credit repayment, you must be able to prove the distribution of expenses. For this, these are “authentic bank statements“, indicates Estelle Amram. Let’s take the example of a heterosexual couple (where inequalities are unfortunately the most pronounced): the man would have repaid 100% of the credit and the woman paid current expenses, “we will take into account the fact that Mr. is the only one to have repaid the debt so if the property is awarded to him during the division, he will pay Mrs. a lesser amount.“
What recourse do we have in the event of disagreement?
Once again, if the two spouses, civil partners or cohabitees agree to maintain the distribution concluded during the purchase in order not to penalize the other, the question does not arise: the repurchase of the property will be done in the proportions of the notarized deed of purchase.
In the division of the property, if one of the two claims that the other has not repaid the credit in the proportions provided, it is important to know that “everyday living expenses cannot be taken into account“, specifies Estelle Amram. Hence the insistence of the professionals at the time of signing to encourage the couple to repay the loan up to what they indicated in the deed.
Which unions are affected?
All couples are concerned, regardless of the type of their union: whether they are in a civil partnership, cohabiting or married. The only exception: marriage under the community regime. “In this case, in the majority of situations, it is the common funds which will have been used to pay for the common real estate.“, concludes Estelle Amram.
For more information on the association and its support: https://www.notarielles.fr/l-association