Life on the razor''s edge

Hello all,

I edited out my original bleat but the title still applies perfectly.

The latest is that the house my lovely STBX persuaded the estate agents to potentially market for £240,000 is actually worth £215,000 in a court-admissible ''red book'' valuation.

I''m offering her a working business (holiday flat, £10K/year clear profit and rising), in premises worth £110,000. She could live there if need be.

The funds she insists are not in the marital pot (shares, former family trust fund) are significant. She also owes me further money and has premium bonds too.

The big sums show that, after taking of the fees associated with selling up, we''re less than £10,000 apart. She''s already seen a pre-valuation settlement offer and now wants to know on which valuations it''s based.

I''m doing my best to be fair. The house (and flat) were my parents'' legacy; she put in work but very little money.

So, I''m still on the razor''s edge, with a new offer to produce. My gut feeling is that going to court for the difference would be a costly thing, for us both. But though I know her funds are getting limited, she''d also be inclined to fight to the last penny.

This lot isn''t doing my disabilities (inoperable spine problem and multiple sclerosis) any good. I''ve been seeing a counsellor since the marriage failed and recently had hypnotherapy.

She won''t outdo me as regards patience but one has to talk about baggage sometimes. I could use some good news!

Bump!

It''s difficult to figure out what the situation is from your post. If you list out each person''s assets, income and any pension first and then put in what your offer is.

You mention your wife has a trust, I know a fair bit about this area so if you would like to post some specifics such as what type of trust it is, where and when did the money for the trust come from, how many other beneficiaries are there and what are their classes, what was the setellors original intentions and indeed are they still alive or is there a letter of wish''s available from the settelor, what is the current value of the trust and what type of assets are there, who are the trustee''s are they family or professional, where is the trust located as in is it based in the UK or offshore. It''s a complex area, all of the above questions you are entitled to ask for and will be found in the trust deeds and the annual accounts and don''t be fobbed off that it''s secret as if your wife is a beneficiary then she is legally entitled to know this information and so by law she has to pass that information onto you.

Thanks naziam,

I''ve a clear enough picture on the trust thing. I was originally a beneficiary but she took me off the list without discussion or warning. It''s matured now and she''s already been drawing from it...it''s offshore and she''s allowed a certain amount per year with out a tax penalty. In fact, I used to monitor the fund and shares for her, so until early September last year, I knew its content and performance.

According to my solicitor, and other legal advisors, the fund, shares and premium bonds are in the marital pot. My parents'' legacy, in the shape of the house and business premises put in nearly £1/3 million. She put in work but financially, she contributed less than £1,000.

The point is that ''fair'' is a watchword of mine. My concern is that she might fight over the less than £1,000 difference in the settlement, despite the fact that the business is doing well. She can (and does) run a lot of it. All she''d need is to learn, or find someone to run, the computer booking side.

dear naziam, I am divorcing my husband after almost 39 years marriage, have no idea if he has any trusts who is beneficiary and know he has bought premium bonds for the four children but keeps all information himself, we have exchanged form E''s but no mention of all the above, how do I find out and where can I get my hand on this information, thank you so much.

Cambronne, I''m not sure that I''ve answered your question but feel free to post back if there''s anything that''s not been answered fully.

Sherrara I would start a new thread as I''m sure a lot of other people will chip in and have ideas on where to start looking for money but I''ll start on here.

I don''t know about your husbands situation so it''s difficult to be specific but basically your trying to work out the source of the money and then find a paper trail to where it is now, if there is any.

Did your husband have a business that he maybe sold, you can look up the records at companies house even just google his name and relevant information will probably popup.

Did he inherit money then your looking for a will from the person who left it to him, this will be public.

Did he have a job and then saved into a pension then you can ask for specifics about the level of pension. Is he still making payments into it as this would show on payslips or bank statements. The standard time for providing bank statements and the like is 12 months but if you have an concerns you can go back further. Unless someone has prepared for a long time normally there will be a payment here or there that will show up, maybe into or out of a savings account that hasn''t been declared and then from that maybe there are payments out to other accounts.

Most people lie on their Form E and it''s the job of the process to find out what the actual situation is.

If you post more specifics on a new thread then I''m happy to help and can be more specific and I''m sure other''s will have opinions as well.

It''s OK naziam, my post wasn''t so much question as a Cri de Coeur, as indicated by the title.

I''ve put together a new offer, based on the more realistic valuations. Including the savings she''s been madly spending, the difference has come down to just over £7,500.

It could be a step in the right direction. My best fiend''s currently checking it out - I''m very lucky, he''s a barrister.

All being well, it''ll go to my solicitor tomorrow. Then I wait, more.