If you’re married and your home is jointly owned, but you decide to get a divorce, you may then decide to sell the house. Since it’s a marital asset, you both have an ownership claim. It’s often easiest to divide the value of the house by selling it and then splitting up the proceeds after the sale is completed. Additionally, many people just want to sell their house as they move on from this stage in their life and start something new.
However, since homes have become so expensive over the last decade, many people don’t want to lose their house just because they’re getting divorced. The good news is that there are other options, and you may not have to sell.
Refinancing the mortgage
For example, your spouse may agree to give up their share in the home in exchange for other assets, like a retirement account. You can then refinance the mortgage into your own name. You become the sole owner of the house. Property is still divided because your ex got that retirement account, but you can stay in the house and take over the responsibility of paying the mortgage and covering other costs.
Owning the home jointly
Additionally, you and your ex may decide to change nothing and continue on as joint homeowners. Some parents do this if they have children who are close to graduating from high school, for example. In an effort to create more stability for the kids, the parents may continue being joint homeowners—even if only one person lives there—until the children graduate. After that, they can decide what to do with the house. It’s fully legal to own a house together, even after the divorce.
No matter what you decide to do, dividing assets in divorce can be complicated, so be sure you understand your legal options.