3 Methods To Divide A Home During A Divorce

A huge part of getting a divorce is dividing the assets that you have as marital property. While many assets are easy to split up, you may find yourself struggling with how to divide the home you share together. Here are a few methods that can be used to deal with the home.

Sell The Home

The simplest solution is to sell the home and split the profits. This is ideal if both people agree on not wanting to live in the home, and they can both take a 50/50 split of the profits and use it towards a down payment on their next home. Since the home is being sold there will also not be a dispute about how much the home is actually worth. 

However, you'll run into a problem with selling the home if someone wants to keep it. This can be due to having children and not wanting to disrupt their lives by moving to a new home, or there is simply a desire to keep the home. You'll need to find a way to convince them that selling the home is the best to move forward with both of your lives.

Buyout One Spouse's Share

If you can't convince your spouse to sell the home, then they will need to buy your share of the property. They will essentially mortgage the home in their name, and then pay you half of the home's worth based on the assessed value of the property as determined by an independent appraiser. 

There are two potential problems with a buyout that you need to be aware of. There is a chance that both people do not agree on the appraised value of the home. This can require getting an additional appraisal done or settling on what a fair price for the home actually is. It can also be a problem if the person that wants to keep the home can't secure a mortgage. They may need a co-signer to get a loan on their own. 

Delay The Sale Of The Home

Don't want to sell the home right now? You can always defer the sale of the home to a later date, such as after the children graduate high school. You'll then split the equity in the home at the time of the sale, which may be much more than what the home is worth today. You'll then need to reach an agreement on how much the person staying in the home will pay each month to live there until the sale happens.

Contact a divorce lawyer near you to learn more.

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