Getting a Divorce and Forced to Sell Your Home

An unfortunate but frequent aftereffect of divorce is the necessity to sell the family home. Some of the most common reasons for having to sell the home are that the home was recently acquired and the mortgage payment is very high. Because a second home must be established for the other party, it is no longer financially possible to dedicate a large amount of the couples combined income to the housing expense of the home they purchased together.

Substantial equity in the home resulting in neither the husband or the wife being able to afford to buyout their spouse’s share of the home. One party, usually the wife has been out of work being a housewife, caring for the kids for so long that she does not have the financial resources or the credit to refinance the mortgage to her name. The couple engaged in behavior that resulted in excessive legal fees and requires the sale of a large asset (such as their house) to pay off any resulting debts that occur as a result of their actions.

Divorce can be a financial blow that nobody ever plans ahead or saves the money up for. When extra funds are needed, the easiest, most practical and often the highest valued asset they can sell, is the family home.Often times selling the home is the only solution available to a divorcing couple.

Often one or both parties are hesitate and resist the idea of selling the family home. There are compelling arguments against this such as children needing consistency and selling the home they have lived in increases the pain and disruption they are already feeling from the divorce of their parents. The couple has strong emotional attachment to the home making the decision to sell even harder. Many people feeling that owning a home is the “American dream” and this dream is lost due to the divorce.

If one or the other party refuses to cooperate or agree to sell my property, there is potential for increased legal fees when the court has to force the issue of selling the home to pay off debts or split the proceeds. These are all important things to consider, however the bottom line for many divorcing couples is that sale of the family home is unavoidable. Consider discussing all of the available options for your home with a real estate professional who can help you sell my property.