What are matrimonial home rights and how long do they last?

O.K. this is a very gray area so try to understand that even with all the "I's" dotted and "T's" crossed you still may not have these rights guaranteed. It's up to a judge as to if it really applies to you. Simply put, these rights mean that if you live or have lived with someone for a period of time, they can't sell the property you are or have dwelt on without your consent. As you can tell there is so much gray area that this is hard to enforce. There is an application you must first sign. Then after all this is done, if the judge thinks that you have not in any way contributed to the acquisition of the property, you could still be denied the property rights. Let me give you some examples of those who would be granted this right..... Someone whose shared payments on the property and has proof of this. Someone who has lived with someone for an extended period of time as husband and wife but without the paperwork (note: this better be allot longer than most marriages last, like beyond the national average). Someone who was married at the time of acquisition but whose name was kept off the deed for whatever reason. If you don't fit into any of those categories then the judge will probably not grant you this right because, well, you would be considered a gold digger!