Real Property Division Issues Faced by Divorcing Couples

Colorado couples may be interested in an article looking at how property division works with a home owned by both former spouses. When one party keeps the home, the other party should take steps to ensure that they are no longer financially responsible for it.

Property division is one of the more difficult divorce legal issues couples deal with. When the former couple owns a home together, these problems may be amplified. With a piece of real property, the former spouses have often signed onto a mortgage as a couple. When they split, the two ex-spouses are still going to be jointly responsible for paying off that loan, even when the property is given to only one of them in the divorce.

Generally, there are two ways to remove the party who will not own the home from the mortgage. The first way is for the party keeping the home to refinance the house in only their name. This often requires a good credit rating, so the person's credit report should be monitored periodically in the lead up to the divorce. Any errors should be corrected or disputed immediately as these may prevent that person from refinancing. If they are not able to refinance the home on their own, the other option is to sell the house. This will potentially remove both parties from any debt liability regarding the home.

Property division is one of many issues that come up during a divorce. An attorney who has experience in family law may be able to help a person evaluate their situation and determine their needs regarding spousal and child support or property division. The attorney may then be able to work with the other party's attorney to craft a divorce agreement that is fair for both parties.

Source: Credit.com, "How to Divide Your House in a Divorce", Scott Sheldon, July 09, 2014

Tags: Divorce, child support, dispute, divorce legal issues, property division