QLD Remove name from Property Title

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Lis_1957

Member
4 September 2019
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My sister and her husband and I bought a unit in 2013. We are all on the mortgage and the Property title.
My sister and her husband separated in 2014 and her husband has not contributed to the mortgage since that time. We have remortgaged recently and he signed a stat dec declaring he agreed to my sister and I refinancing and having his name removed from the loan and the title deed for the property and that he would not receive any monetary amount from the refinancing and transfer of the title deed into our names.

He also signed the release of mortgage documents. He informed my sister he was returning to live in Germany (he was a German citizen but gained Australian citizenship 7 or 8 years ago) but we believe he thought he had signed all necessary paperwork. He didn't advise my sister that he had left. She took the final Title deed paperwork to him to be signed but he had already left for Germany. We are unable to contact him. Our conveyancer is also unable to contact him. We do not have any contact details for him in Germany and do not believe he intends returning to Australia. This information has come from friends and colleagues of his.

We can't complete our refinancing as the property title change is unable to be executed without his signature despite him providing the Stat dec and signing all paperwork that was presented to him before he went to Germany.

What can we do to resolve this situation?

Thank you so much.
 

Rob Legat - SBPL

Lawyer
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16 February 2017
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The only way you're going to be able to transfer the interest without the execution of a transfer document by your brother in law is with a court order. This will probably mean an order under the Family Law Act via the Family Court or the Federal Circuit Court, or potentially one from the Queensland Supreme Court under the Property Law Act.

I suggest your sister speaks to a family lawyer.