Denver would like your advice about two property matters, one concerning 53 Cross Street and the other concerning Swettenham Cottage.

53 Cross Street

Denver and his brother, Watson, purchased an investment property in Sheffield together in 2005, which they have since rented out to students. They purchased the property for 200,000, with Denver contributing 50,000 and Watson contributing 150,000. Denver did not wish to be named on the legal title at that time, for reasons which are not relevant here. As a result, the property was registered in the sole name of Watson. Both Denver and Watson were preoccupied with personal matters at the time of the purchase and did not discuss the ownership of the property, nor did they complete any paperwork regarding how they owned the property as a result of their contributions.

In 2010, Denver paid 10,000 for some repairs to the property. During this time, the property was not rented out and Denver paid the utility bills in full for 6 months, amounting to 8,000. Following a family argument, Denver and Watson are now estranged. Watson is in the process of selling the property at its current value of 300,000 and Denver wants to know what interest, if any, he has in the property and what he is entitled to financially, if anything, from the sale.

Swettenham Cottage

In 2010, Denver and his girlfriend, Petra, purchased for 400,000 and immediately moved into Swettenham Cottage, a 19th-century property in Oxfordshire. Denver contributed 200,000 to the purchase price, Petra contributed 100,000 and they took out a bank loan for the balance, secured by a mortgage in their joint names. Swettenham Cottage was registered in Denver and Petra's joint names. Despite their unequal contributions, they did not agree on anything concerning their beneficial ownership and the transfer did not contain any declaration to this effect, nor is there any other paperwork in this respect.

In the early years of their ownership of Swettenham Cottage, Denver and Petra both worked on a full-time basis, both earning good salaries, and they both paid equal amounts to the mortgage and the outgoings for the property. In 2015, they had a daughter, Sia, and the following year a son, Tobias. Denver and Petra agreed that Petra would give up her job to look after Sia and Tobias. For the past 5 years, Denver has paid the mortgage and outgoings on the property from his salary. Petra has taken on occasional work on a freelance basis, which she has used to pay for occasional childcare for the children, a cleaner for the house, and clothes and other items for the children. She also used some of her freelance earnings to pay for the children's bedrooms to be redecorated in 2018.

Denver and Petra have recently separated following a turbulent time in their relationship and have agreed to sell the property and move on separately, with shared custody and maintenance of the children. They have found a buyer for the property and are selling it for 600,000 and Denver is of the view that, once the property has been sold and the outstanding mortgage repaid, he should be entitled to twice the amount of the sale proceeds as Petra, having contributed twice as much initially.