My husband has a gambling problem and I am concerned that he may try to sell our home to pay off gambling debts. The house is in his name and I am very worried. Can he sell our home without my consent?
No, your husband may not legally sell your home without your consent. The family home of a married couple is protected by specific legislation, namely, the Family Home Protection Act, 1976. Similar protection is provided for the shared home of civil partners by the civil partnership legislation.
The Family Home Protection Act prevents one spouse or civil partner from selling, mortgaging, leasing, or transferring the family home without the consent of the other spouse or civil partner. This applies regardless of whether the home is owned jointly by the married couple or civil partners or where the home is owned by just one party.
Consent of a spouse or civil partner must be secured prior to any sale, lease, mortgage or transfer. Such consent must be in writing.
If you remain very concerned you may inform the Property Registration Authority that you are a spouse of the registered owner of the property. A notice to that effect will then be registered against the property. However, you are not obliged to enter such registration, and not doing so will not affect your rights, it will simply offer you peace of mind.
Contact Byrne Carolan Cunningham if you have any queries left.