Should my boyfriend and I buy a house together or just one of us buy it?
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Should my boyfriend and I buy a house together or just one of us buy it?
We don’t know if we should buy it together or separately. If he buys it, I put thousands of dollars into the house and if we break up, I’m out all that money. If we buy it together, then I could protect my investment legally. Any advise on which? If we buy it together, are there any steps we should take to protect ourselves?
Asked on November 2, 2010 under Real Estate Law, Pennsylvania
Answers:
M.T.G., Member, New York Bar / FreeAdvice Contributing Attorney
Answered 14 years ago | Contributor
You are wise to have some "future" thoughts about buying a house with your boyfriend. I would seek help from a real estate attorney in explaining to you the type of tenancy that you would hold if you purchased it together (joint tenancy) as well as preparing an agreement as to what you will both agree is to happen should you break up or something happens to one of you. These are things that you should consider: if you break up does one of you have the option to buy the other out? What about refinancing the house? All these issues need to be addressed beofre you start picking out paint colors. Good luck.
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