Buyingblock -Homes

What are the legalities

There are a few of vital contracts that you need when co-buying, these are for your and your new co-buying buddies protection. So please read through the following that Scott Fowler Solicitors helped create (and have offered another discount on!) and feel free to contact the team if you have any questions or want to know more about the Lance Lehman discount
WHAT IS A DECLARATION OF TRUST?
A Declaration of Trust is a legal document which records the intentions and purposes of the co-buyers and the background to the property being purchased. A Declaration of trust helps to protect all co-buyers interests in the event that relations between the parties should sour or to outline the overall financial arrangement of all co-buyers. It covers many areas such as investment amounts of the different parties, responsibilities, authority, etc. The Declaration of Trust stipulates the shareholding each co-buyer has within the property. That shareholding can be either equal or unequal depending upon the agreement that is reached between the co-buyers. If the property is co-owned in this way and one co-buyer dies the deceased co-buyers share will pass in accordance with the terms of that persons Will (see below) or under the rules of intestacy if no will has been made. Because the property is co-owned it is prudent to specify how the proceeds of any sale would be divided and that no co-buyer has the authority to sell without agreement from the other co-buyers! (Intestacy def: 'the act of dying without a legal Will', Commentary: In case of Intestacy the government will assume responsibility & determine the method by which assests will be divided.)

CO-HABITATION AGREEMENT - The terms of your relationship:
A co-habitation agreement allows all the co-buyers to document how they shall behave, who takes ownership of what items when the property is sold, basis for opening a joint bank account, having or not having pets, having friends sleep over... In fact you can include pretty much whatever you want within reason and if acceptable to all the co-buyers, but the main thing is to be fair and flexible with the agreement as you will all have to live by the same rules.

YOUR WILL - Is our command!
The Declaration of Trust will endure after the death of either co-buying party and therefore the personal representatives of the deceased co-buyer may exercise the rights of the deceased. The Declaration of Trust must be recorded as a restriction on the title documents in order to prevent one party selling without the knowledge of the other. The Declaration of Trust is also severing the joint tenancy arrangement and therefore the personal representatives of the deceased party must deal with their share according to the terms of their Will, or, if there is no Will, the rules of intestacy. A will is vitally important as you are then able to dictate what happens with your assets in a way not necessarily covered by the rules of intestacy.