Cohabitation Agreements

What do they do?

So long as they are validly made, the terms are reasonable and each party to the Agreement has obtained independent advice on it, a court is likely to uphold the Agreement in the event of a dispute.

A Cohabitation Agreement can be made either before you move in together or during your cohabitation. It is important that this document is kept up-to-date as your personal circumstances may change

Cohabitation Agreements can reflect:-

• Who owns (and owes) what at the time of the Agreement, and in what proportions;
• What financial Agreements you have decided to make while you are living together;
• How property, assets and income should be divided if you should split up.

The Agreement can address anything from household bills and joint bank account expenditure to ownership of cars, furniture and houses.

Pre-Nuptial Agreements

What do they do?

Like Cohabitation Agreements, Pre-Nuptial Agreements can reflect the financial intentions of a couple who plan to get married/enter into a civil partnership by reflecting what the couple intend to happen to their money and property if their marriage or civil partnership were to end. They can be particularly helpful where one party to the marriage wants to protect assets which they owned prior to the marriage.

If you would like to create a Cohabitation or Pre-Nuptial Agreement, please contact Prue Arnott on 01482 621800 or psa@burstalls.co.uk Our prices start from £800 plus VAT.

Declarations of Trust

Declarations of Trust are often used where unequal contributions have been made towards the purchase price of the property. They are made at the time of purchase and registered against the Title Deeds of the property at the Land Registry. As an example:-

• Sarah and Mike purchase a property for £200,000. Sarah contributed £15,000 to the deposit and Mike contributed £5,000.
• Sarah may want a Declaration of Trust to state that when the property is sold, she should be reimbursed of the £15,000 she contributed and Mike of the £5,000.
• Any remaining equity in the property can be divided how the parties wish, for example, 50% to each party or (say) 70%/30% if it is agreed that one party is to pay the Lion’s share of the mortgage and household expenditure.

If you are in the process of buying a house or would like to know more about creating a Declaration of Trust, please contact Emma Dixon on 01482 621800 or ed@burstalls.co.uk