What if money is to be borrowed from a bank to buy the new house?

• If you are a part owner, you will have to sign a mortgage over the property. Are you prepared to go into a mortgage?
• If your family does not pay, do you have the ability to meet the mortgage payments?
• If they don't pay and you can't, the house will have to be sold. The bank will get their money before you. Where will you live then?

If this sounds negative, remember I have seen some that have gone wrong and my views must be colored by these. No one comes to tell me how wonderful the new living arrangements are. I have put this on paper mostly to jog people into thinking about what might go wrong. I hope this encourages people to have full and frank discussions with their family before they go into such an arrangement. It is my experience that family often avoid discussing difficulty questions as it can be confronting.