When a married couple decides to call it quits and file for divorce, one of the biggest decisions they have to make is selling their house. This can be a bit tricky if they have a joint mortgage on the house, in which case, the mortgage needs to be sorted out.

This is typically done by having one of the spouses’ name removed from the mortgage. Usually the spouse who earns more or who has a job will be the one to have his or her name retained on the mortgage.

As for the spouse who gets their name removed from the mortgage, he/she will also benefit as he/she will be able to apply for a loan for a new home. Moreover, getting his/her name removed from the mortgage will also help break any links that tie the married couple’s credit together and thus, remove joint­ debt.

The spouse whose name gets retained on the mortgage can decide whether to keep the house or sell it. Various considerations come into play here, most importantly the spouse’s ability to keep the home with their income alone. The big question is if he/she be able to afford the house alone, now that he/she owns the mortgage alone?

This is an important consideration especially if during the marriage, both spouses have individual incomes. Will a single income be able to support keeping the house? If not, then the better option will be to simply sell the house.

In most cases, in order to avoid confusion and hassle, the divorcing couple simply decide to sell the house outright and divide the proceeds, regardless of whether one or both of them can afford to keep the house.

But in case one of the spouses really wants to own the house independently but is unsure of whether he/she can afford keeping the property alone, speaking with a mortgage lender is typically one of the first steps to take. This is to clarify all financial matters and issues surrounding the house and also to find out if the spouse who wants to keep the house can really afford it.

Alternative means to keep the house may also be discussed here depending on how willing the mortgage lender is to accommodate it.

There are rare cases where the divorcing couple are unable to come to agreeable terms, thus preventing the mortgage to be broken. This can become a but ugly and complicated. Aside from finding a common ground between the separating partners, a mutually acceptable agreement regarding the property in question needs to be arrived at as well.

These kinds of situations are not new to Houston Capital Home Buyers.

In our years of working on the real estate front, we’ve witnessed separations and divorces of all shapes and sizes along with the real estate issues that come along with them. We have extensive experience in dealing with these complications and we’re confident we’ll be able to handle any divorce issues that anyone may throw our way.

If you’re in the middle of a divorce and you’re looking to break up a mortgage with your spouse, call us at 713-581-9075. I’m sure we will be able to sort things out for and with you.

All the best,
Brant
713-581-9075
Houston Capital Home Buyers
“We Don’t Buy Every House, But We Help Every Client”