Q: The father of my children and I have lived together for 17 years. The house is in his name.
I have been a stay at home mother for going on 10 years. He financially took care of me and the children for those years. We are not married and Nj doesn’t aknowledge common law marriage. I put my inheritance into the down payment for the home. I took care of his mother, the multi family home, sick dog, kids and household duties. He put the house in foreclosure and i found out 1 month before we were locked out. He refinanced the house. Do I have any rights to financials for myself or the children when i leave? He now holds me financially hostage by not providing the way he was because I no longer want to be with him after that devastating problem. He won’t put the house on the market to try and resell it so I can’t get my inheritance back and start providing for my children on my own. He says he contacted a lawyer and he doesn’t have to give me anything but he’s not very good at telling the truth. Please help.
A: This case is going to be very complex and it could get very expensive fairly fast. You need to retain experienced mortgage foreclosure defense and matrimonial counsel. Only a mortgage foreclosure and matrimonial attorney has the expertise to prevent you from having more problems than you can possibly imagine. To properly answer your questions and address your concerns, the best way to handle this is with an in-person consultation with an experienced mortgage foreclosure defense and matrimonial attorney. Pick the best lawyer you can find and remember one rule: a good lawyer is generally never cheap, and a cheap lawyer is generally never good so don't choose based on price.
A: You certainly have rights to the home. I agree that this case could get expensive if it is contested. You will need to retain an attorney to get your equity out of the home, child support, partition, and move on.
Justia Ask a Lawyer is a forum for consumers to get answers to basic legal questions. Any information sent through Justia Ask a Lawyer is not secure and is done so on a non-confidential basis only.
The use of this website to ask questions or receive answers does not create an attorney–client relationship between you and Justia, or between you and any attorney who receives your information or responds to your questions, nor is it intended to create such a relationship. Additionally, no responses on this forum constitute legal advice, which must be tailored to the specific circumstances of each case. You should not act upon information provided in Justia Ask a Lawyer without seeking professional counsel from an attorney admitted or authorized to practice in your jurisdiction. Justia assumes no responsibility to any person who relies on information contained on or received through this site and disclaims all liability in respect to such information.
Justia cannot guarantee that the information on this website (including any legal information provided by an attorney through this service) is accurate, complete, or up-to-date. While we intend to make every attempt to keep the information on this site current, the owners of and contributors to this site make no claims, promises or guarantees about the accuracy, completeness or adequacy of the information contained in or linked to from this site.
