What Happens if You Can’t Afford Your House After Divorce?

Divorce and Foreclosure

Divorce and foreclosureA Scottsdale divorce foreclosure attorney helps you to cope with the real estate issues that your divorce can cause. Many couples own a house together and the spouses work together to pay for the mortgage and other costs on the home. Unfortunately, once a couple gets a divorce, the house may become unaffordable. If you don’t sell the house and get out from under the bills you cannot pay, you could find yourself facing foreclosure.

Singer Pistiner, P.C. can provide you with assistance in making smart choices about your house when you are ending your marriage. Our legal team will work with you to decide if you should get your house sold and how to get it sold.

We can negotiate with the lawyers for your ex-spouse about issues with the house and can help you to avoid a foreclosure of your home that goes on your credit. Give us a call to find out more about how a Scottsdale divorce foreclosure attorney can assist you in dealing with your family home when your marriage comes to an end.

What Happens if You Cannot Afford Your House Due to Divorce?

If you cannot afford to make payments on your home during your divorce because your ex is no longer contributing to the bills, you should try to work out a legal separation agreement with your ex. You can negotiate on continuing to make payments together so the house does not go into foreclosure. You can also go to court to get a legal separation agreement if you and your spouse are separated and your spouse is not cooperating with either helping you to pay the bills or paying you fair support during the time you are separated.

If you cannot afford to live separately during divorce, you may decide to continue to live together in the home to pay the mortgage bills so you do not fall into foreclosure. You can list the house on the market and can work out with your divorce attorneys when you should sell it and for what price. Arizona’s community property rules entitle both spouses to an ownership interest in the house, so you should both be able to receive half of the proceeds from the sale of a shared family home.

Removing Spouse From Mortgage After Divorce

Avoiding foreclosure by making the right choices during your divorce is going to be very important. However, if your ex keeps your house after the divorce, you could actually still be at risk of being foreclosed on.

The problem is, the mortgage is probably in both of your names. If your ex keeps the house but the mortgage stays in both of your names, the mortgage lender is still going to consider you both responsible for repaying the debt. After all, the loan was granted on the basis of both of your incomes and on the basis of an application from both of you. The bank isn’t just going to let you off the hook if the loan does not get paid, even if your divorce settlement agreement says it is your ex-spouse’s responsibility to pick up the bills.

If your ex is going to keep the house after the divorce, you should try to insist that he or she refinance the home mortgage into his own name only. If this is too difficult to do during divorce because of credit or income issues, you may want to insist that the house be sold or you may want to make provisions for a refinance to occur as soon as possible. You do not want to get a foreclosure on your credit months or years after your divorce because your ex decides to stop paying for the house.

Getting Help from A Scottsdale Divorce Foreclosure Attorney

Singer Pistiner, P.C. provides the type of comprehensive legal and financial advice that clients need to make smart choices as their marriage comes to an end. We want to help you avoid foreclosure and will work with you to find alternatives, including coming to an agreement to sell your house quickly.

To find out more about your options for your family home and about how to protect your financial security during and after divorce, download our free divorce guide today. You can also give us a call at (480) 418-7011 to talk with a Scottsdale divorce foreclosure attorney about your options. Get started now, as the sooner you get the right legal help, the better your chances of avoiding foreclosure or another financial disaster.


Contact us online now to schedule your free consultation!


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