house deposit and share

I have been with my partner now for a year and a half we bought a house together and because of her bad credit I used my score to get the mortgage. The deposit she put down was 72000 and I paid the solicitors and surveys to begin with which came to 2400, she has an obvious problem with not handling money very well and it is now dragging me down with her I have told her we are now splitting up and I need to know what percentage of the deposit I get .

If you are unmarried this is a complicated legally and there is no substitute for legal advice from a solicitor.

Under property law the starting point is the house is under the ownership of the person named on the deeds. However because your partner made a direct contribution to the purchase price she can establish a beneficial interest in the property. When quantifying an interest weight is given to the size of the contribution. If your finances have been run independently after a short relationship she may get most of her contribution back, if not all of it. However any payments for house improvements or the mortgage you made are a factor too. People don''t normally pay for house improvements or the mortgage unless there is a common intention to share the property.

Because the law is complicated the legal costs for court proceedings are expensive. You would be well advised to consult a solicitor to find out where you stand and what options there are in your particular circumstances. Then you can try to reach agreement between yourself or with the help of mediation or negotiate through a solicitor to reach a settlement from an informed position.

Bear in mind a judgement needs to be made as to what might be achieved over what period of time and at what costs. Solicitor and mediator fees can quickly rack up £3k-5k and sometimes it is less expensive to cut your loses and just walk away.