Facing Divorce: Who Will Get the House?

If you and your spouse jointly own a home and you are getting a divorce, who gets the house is one of the issues that you and your spouse will need to decide. If you cannot decide, the court will decide for you as part of your marital property settlement agreement. Each state has different divorce laws. Some states are community property states such as California, Idaho, Louisiana, Nevada, New Mexico, Texas, Washington and Wisconsin. In those states, property acquired during the marriage is considered community property, unless it falls under the separate property category such as property that is gifted or inherited.

In equitable distribution states, other considerations are taken into effect when dividing property and assets such as the length of the marriage, the physical condition and age of the parties, earning capabilities, standard of living accustomed to during the marriage and any agreements the parties may have entered into prior to or during the marriage. Other consideration may be if children are involved.

The court would prefer that couples decide their marital property division themselves to save time and money. But if you cannot, keep in mind that you may not get what you hoped for. It is recommended that you consult with a family law attorney to help you with your marital property division and divorce proceedings.

How to Decide?

It’s a difficult decision for most people to decide on how to divide up property during a divorce, There are several factors to take into consideration such as:

Whether children are involved. Most families don’t want to uproot their children from school and friends so usually the spouse that has physical custody stays in the home if the parties can afford to keep the home.
It may be that one spouse earns more income, and will be responsible for making the house payments, paying the insurance and taxes. The decision just depends on each spouse’s financial situation and how they are getting along. Or both spouses may decide to share the costs of maintaining the home and the house payments until they sell the house. Or one party buys the other party out.
The real estate market conditions. Whether or not you have equity in your home and are able to sell it.
Job location. Maybe one spouse works near the home, and wants to stay close to their job. The other spouse may decide to move out of the area and take a job in a different state.

The most common solution when children are not involved is to sell the home and divide the profits. If you and your spouse are having trouble deciding on what to do with your house, you should seek legal help.

Speak with an Attorney

Since divorces and property division are complicated, it is recommended that you speak with an attorney to get legal advice. The attorney can represent you in your divorce negotiations and in court.

Thinking About Divorce?