Cohabitation: Some things to think about if you’re living with your partner.

As family lawyers, we often find that a lot of unmarried couples are not entirely sure what their rights are when they live together. Some believe that they accrue some rights over property whilst others firmly believe in the non-existent concept of the ‘common-law spouse’ and consider that they have exactly the same rights as a married couple in relation to property, income and pensions from the outset of their relationship.

If you are unmarried and planning on living with your partner it’s really important that you think about your position before moving in together as this can go a long way to avoiding costly and stressful court proceedings should the relationship sadly end. Here are some things to consider together: –

1. How will you own your property?
Joint tenants – your interest passes automatically on your death to the surviving owner: or
Tenants in common – your share passes under a Will to a beneficiary of your choice or in the absence of a will to your next of kin who is not legally your partner.

2. Is one party paying a larger deposit for the property that the other?
If so, you need to think about protecting that with a Trust Deed as you will have no automatic right to recover this upon any future sale or the breakdown of the relationship and indeed it could end up being shared with your former partner.

3. How will you arrange your day to day finances?
You need to consider whether you will open a joint account to manage this which obviously creates a degree of responsibility towards one another, particularly if there is an overdraft facility. Also – will you share equally all of the costs associated with your home or is one of you in a better financial position and as such will contribute more?

4. Will you have a Cohabitation Agreement?
It is important that your intentions in respect of the above matters are properly recorded in case your relationship ends and there is a disagreement over what you intended. It is important to seek legal advice so that you are clear about your rights and what your position is. The agreement you reach can be incorporated into a ‘cohabitation’ or ‘living together’ agreement. This is a formal legal document which will record your intentions and set out what will happen to your property and any other assets held either solely or jointly if your relationship ends. Although you might not want to incur additional costs at the same time as a house purchase, the costs of such an agreement will be considerably less than the costs, both emotional and financial, that you will incur if there is a future dispute.