Do You Have to Sell Your Home in Divorce?

Although you don’t necessarily have to sell your home after you go through a divorce, it is certainly a common occurrence. Most people that do sell their homes after divorce do so for one of the following reasons. They can no longer afford the mortgage payments on the home because of the terms of their divorce and the fact that they are no longer combining incomes to pay for it, and there must be a second home established. The home has very large equity in it, and neither spouse has the money to buy out the other.
Sometimes one of the parties was not working for many years and needs to get money to be able to pay for education that would improve their earning capacity. We’ve also seen some situations where there were huge legal fees that may force the sale of a large asset, such as the house.

Basically, the house can become a financial casualty as people are often financially unprepared for the possibility of a divorce. It’s not exactly something that people plan for, and selling the house is a short-term solution to a big financial problem.

However, there may be reasons that people resist the idea of selling the house. These reasons are often emotional in nature. For example, the need for consistency that children have after a divorce is extremely significant. It is asking a lot of children to be able to deal with losing not only their parents’ marriage, but the home in which they grew up. There is also the strong emotional attachment that can be bound to a home that was for so long a family residence that built up many memories over the years.

How to Know When You Need a Prenuptial Agreement

If you are about to enter into a marriage with your significant other, you may be wondering if a prenuptial agreement is needed to protect your assets. Although no one likes to think about the possibility of a marriage dissolving, reasons couples choose to enter into a prenuptial agreement may be to clarify terms of divorce in case of future separation. Determining how a couple’s assets will be divided in a divorce before the couple gets married enables each party to clearly understand what they will receive after the dissolution of their marriage. This understanding can help reduce arguments in divorce proceedings, and may allow for a smoother divorce process.

If one or both members of a couple have children from a previous relationship, they may use their prenuptial agreement to outline how they wish to pass down their assets in the case of their death. Without formally stating their intended division of assets, a spouse risks that the majority of their property could be claimed by their partner, or divided according to state laws.

Couples may use a prenuptial agreement to distinguish who is responsible for which financial aspects of their relationship. They can also clarify who has a right to which assets. If you or your spouse acquired significant debt prior to your relationship, you may wish to include in a prenuptial agreement that one partner is not responsible for the other’s financial obligations.

There are many reasons couples choose to enter into a prenuptial agreement. Often, couples choose this type of contract because they want to have a say in the division of their property in the event of divorce or death. If no prenuptial agreement or — in the case of death — estate plan exists, the state’s laws determine who has access to a person’s assets.

Divorce Lawyer Free Consultation

If you have a question about divorce law or if you need to start or defend against a divorce case in Utah, please call Ascent Law at (801) 676-5506. We want to help you.