I bought a house with my partner 10 years ago. He stayed on in the house but didn’t pay any bills, and when he did a runner in 2012 the building society advised me to hand back the keys. I have now met someone else and we want to get married, but my new partner is concerned that, as my husband, he will become liable for my debts.
Husbands aren’t liable for their wives’ debts, or vice versa. However, depending on what contact you’ve had with the building society it can ask you to repay the money you owe at any time – certainly within six years from the date you handed over the keys. It’s unlikely you will be able to buy a house in joint names, but if you did, or you opened a joint account with your husband, these could be at risk.