Cohabitation Rights in 2025: All You Need to Know
7th May, 2025
Cohabiting families are the fastest growing family type in England and Wales. This article details cohabitation rights in 2025 and highlights everything you need to know.
Cohabitation agreements are useful for unmarried couples looking to rent, buy and own property. The law treats married and cohabiting couples differently when considering housing. Entering a marriage or civil partnership means that in the event of a relationship breakdown, the court pays less attention to who owns the property, but instead seeks to divide the value of the property in such a way that it believes is “fair”, which normally means in a way that meets their future housing need. This contrasts to cohabitees when fairness is not a relevant factor. The court can only determine how the parties have agreed to own the property, but it cannot then go on to adjust that ownership to provide a fair outcome.
Rights as a cohabitee
When entering the property ladder with your partner as a cohabitee, there are certain rights available to you, depending on your situation:
- Renting property together
When both partners are named on the tenancy agreement, you are both equally responsible for rent and other tenancy conditions. Should you separate, you will need to talk to your landlord about changing the tenancy agreement.
- Owning property together as joint tenants
If you own property with your partner as joint tenants, you both own the property equally so if the relationship were to break down, you would each be entitled to half the property, even if you contributed unequally to its purchase. Furthermore, if one party dies, their share of the property would automatically transfer to the surviving owner, something which cannot be changed by a Will.
- Owning the property as tenant in common
If you own the property as tenants in common, you each own a separate share of the property so you could, for example, say that one partner owns 70% of the property and the other partner owns 30% of the property. If the relationship breaks down and the property is sold, each person would receive that percentage of the proceeds of sale. If one partner dies, their share will not automatically be inherited by the other, unless they have left it to you in their will.
- One person owns the property
Usually, if one partner owns the property, the other partner has no immediate rights to that property unless it can be shown that there it was expressly declared that they should have rights or it can be shown that both partners had a common intention that they should have rights. For example, the couple may have a common intention that if the non-owning partner contributed towards the mortgage, they would acquire a particular interest in the property.
However, if your relationship breaks down and you are not the owner of the property, you have no right to continue living there.
Protecting rights as a cohabitee
There are multiple ways to protect your legal rights as a cohabitee:
- Declaration of Trust
A Declaration of Trust can provide clarity and fairness around purchasing a property with your partner or moving into a property they already own. This includes the contributions you are both making to the property, why you are buying the property, how the proceeds will be divided when sold, and when the property will be sold.
It is crucial to protect your financial interests when you buy the property, not when the relationship breaks down.
- Cohabitation agreement
Entering a cohabitation agreement during the process of buying a house with your partner is recommended, but the agreement itself can be drafted any time. Recognised as a record of each partner’s intentions, a cohabitation agreement protects your rights in case of relationship breakdown or death.
- Writing a Will
If one partner dies without a Will, and you were unmarried, there is no automatic presumption that they will inherit any of your assets, including property. Writing a Will allows clear instruction on how your property should be shared in any unforeseen circumstances.
How Ward Hadaway can help with cohabitation rights and agreements
At Ward Hadaway, our specialist divorce solicitors and family lawyers with expertise in cohabitation agreements have your best interests at the forefront of our work.
We are ready to discuss your cohabitation rights in detail, based on your circumstances and needs.
Please note that this briefing is designed to be informative, not advisory and represents our understanding of English law and practice as at the date indicated. We would always recommend that you should seek specific guidance on any particular legal issue.
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