Could you please advise of my predicament?

[p_h]

Hello,
I hav had an IVA running for nearly a year now with no missed or late payments.
I received the paperwork for the yearly review and house registration. My wife has opened up my mail as I am working away from home.
I informed my wife through all of the steps of the IVA when applying.
She now does not weant any of the IVA to be attached to the house - our marriage has been rocky of late (hence the working away) and the 2 choices I seem to have are:
continue with the IVA and get divorced (in which case my wife will get the house signed over to her so I wont have any equity) or cancel the IVA and stay married.
I dont have a problem with monthly payments and got the IVA because I was concerned about paying off my debt and not ignoring it.
Could you please advise of my predicament?
regards

[Andy2]

What do you mean by house registration ? Did your IVA include an equity release and how is the house owned at the moment - just in your name or in joint names ?

[p-h]

Yes the IVA includes an equity release and the house is in both our names.
If the very worst was to happen and I got divorced I would sign the house over to my wife and children.

[Andy2]

Surely the equity release only addresses your share of the equity anyway so if your wife is not in the IVA, what is she so concerned about ? You need to explain again that it is reasonable for your creditors to want a share of your equity (not hers) to satisfy your debts. The divorce/signing over your share of the house would not work anyway.

[MelanieGiles]

Hi ph

I seems to me that this provision was not properly explained to you and your wife at the beginning of the IVA, at which time your Supervisor should have ensured that your wife was in agreement to the raising of equity from your share.

Whilst I have to be an advocator of people making every effort to repay their debts, this should not be at the expense of family relationships. If your IVA fails, because you fail to make ongoing payments, then the Supervisor will petition for bankruptcy and your wife will be forced to either buy out your share or see the house sold. This will put her in a worse position than she is now, and you cannot effect a transfer of an asset to her when you are insolvent as you have suggested, simply to avoid it becoming available to creditors.

I suggest that you get your wife to chat to your IP so that she fully understands the requirements of your IVA and the risk to the family home if the arrangement fails.

Regards, Melanie Giles, Insolvency Practitioner for over 20 years.

For further details contact me at http://www.melaniegiles.com and view my IVA blog at: http://melaniegiles.blogs.iva.co.uk