FAQS, DO YOU get THE HOUSE DURING DIVORCE

In Divorce, at least three different areas will need to agree upon, Property (ie; houses, cars, furniture), Debt, and children.  The court may issue Child support orders.

We will work closely with both attorneys and mediators to help determine the value of one of your most valuable assets. 

That is why being fully informed about your house and doing all the homework is vital. 

Sometimes we want to keep the house for emotional reasons or because of the children. We want to help you make informed decisions when it comes to the house. 

We want what is best for you. You can keep the house if you know all the risks and are comfortable with those risks. 

Find out about the risks Today!

Community property is everything that the spouses own together. Generally, that includes all property acquired during the marriage except property received by inheritance or gifts from separate property owned before marriage.

Community property is all property bought during the marriage with income received during the marriage. 

Separate property is any property that you or your spouse owned before the marriage or that you received during the marriage as a gift or inheritance. 

Our help extends across six different zones of risk; The Mortgage, Title, The Value of the Home, Mechanic Liens, Insurance, and Condition of the Property. We will help guide you down whichever path is best for you. It does not matter whether you plan on selling or staying put in your current home we can help you make informed decisions.

Competitive Market Analysis (CMA) shows the prices of comparable sales of homes in your neighborhood and is a starting point for the best sales price of your home. We take the CMA along with other information about your house to help determine the top market price at which we would market the property.  The Gifford Group can answer the question, What is my house worth?

Yes, a current CMA is a priceless piece of information that we would recommend in every Divorce situation. We can provide the CMA for free to our clients. 

 Well, it depends. First, there must be no court-imposed restrictions. Also, if you need child or spousal support income to qualify for a new loan – you’ll need to wait. Otherwise, a pre-divorce purchase can be a great option.

NOTE: When purchasing a new home while still legally married, keep in mind that your spouse will be required to sign a Quitclaim Deed prior to closing. This will allow you to claim sole title to the new property.

 This is where the Qualified Domestic Relations Order (QDRO) will be created. The divorce decree must order that these assets will be divided. The court then must approve QDRO and the order must be passed to the administrator of each retirement account. 

  An owelty lien is a tool to utilize when the equity of a home needs to be split. 

 Owelty liens are a type of deed that allows divorcing couples to divide the existing equity in the marital home. This action is commonly utilized in divorces to “buy out” the remaining spouses’ interest in a home.

The party giving up their interest in the home obtains a lien against the property through a divorce decree, called an Owelty lien. The Owelty lien must be filed at the courthouse in the county records. When the party retaining their interest in the house refinances or sells the home, the other party is paid the value of their Owelty lien. This solution allows one person to obtain the full interest in the home while removing the exiting spouse from the mortgage, while also providing the exiting spouse with cash.

 In Texas, the Owelty lien is more valuable than any other state. It is the only way a divorcing couple can access more than 80% of the home's current value without violating the Texas A6 law, or "cash-out law". Without the Owelty Lien, borrowers will pay cashout rates rather than the traditionally lower rate and term rates. 

We can connect you with a Local Lender that can help you walk through this process.

Need to know how much equity you have? 

Use our House Buyout Divorce Calculator 

What is Alimony? 

Alimony is a payment that one spouse makes to the other during and/or after the Divorce Process. In Texas, the court calls these payments "spousal maintenance" or "maintenance." 

You can use our Divorce Alimony Calculator below to calculator the total maintenance support you will receive and for how many years?

How much is spousal support in Texas?  There is no formula to tell you how much spousal maintenance you will be awarded. An award for maintenance cannot exceed $5000 per month or 20% of the spouse's gross income (whichever is less).  

  Calculate how a Divorce house buy out would work for you. This divorce buyout calculator can give you an idea of how much equity you have to divide with your spouse. We can help determine how do I give my spouse equity in a divorce?

This Calculator can calculate three different scenarios and how much equity will be available to split in each case.

The 1st scenario displays how much money each spouse will get if you sell. (The Safest option for both parties) Selling the home to split the equity.

^The 2nd scenario is if you buy out your spouse using the standard 80% cash-out refinance. Standard Refinance to get the house out of the spouse's name.

^^The 3rd scenario is if you buy out your spouse using the Owelty Lien which enables you to do a 95% buy out (this one is a hidden secret most people don't even know that is an option) - Refinance Divorce Buyout to remove them from the deed and recapture more equity.

^Since lenders generally require you to maintain at least 20% equity in your home (though there are exceptions) after a cash-out refinance.

^^We can get you connected to the lender that can do up to 95% of the equity for the spouse buyout.

Download Our Free Informational Resource at https://www.mydivorcerealestate.com 

The Gifford Group