diovorce including 2 homes

[dizzy42]

What is the name of your state (only U.S. law ) California is my state of residence. been married 22 years we own 2 homes one is paid for (i am currently residing in the paid for house) he resides in the primary residence. the total mortgage on the primary resedence is 524K will i have the option to purchase or buy out his share of the paid for home since i currently reside in the residence or will the court tell us to liquidate all assets. he has retained a lawyer i have not all assets are straightforward children are grown.

 

[mistoffolees]

What is the name of your state (only U.S. law ) California is my state of residence. been married 22 years we own 2 homes one is paid for (i am currently residing in the paid for house) he resides in the primary residence. the total mortgage on the primary resedence is 524K will i have the option to purchase or buy out his share of the paid for home since i currently reside in the residence or will the court tell us to liquidate all assets. he has retained a lawyer i have not all assets are straightforward children are grown.

You have a huge amount of assets at stake (as well as debt). You do not want to do this on your own. You should immediately contact a good attorney about handling this case for you.

In general, the court will only order assets to be liquidated if you can't agree on a settlement. You will get half of the marital assets (after 22 years, that's probably going to be most of your assets, but it can depend so ask your attorney) and half of the marital debt. The best thing is for the two of you to work out a deal that you're both happy with and then the court will approve it.

As I understand it, he keeps the marital home and the debt on it. You get the home that's paid for. You will owe him half of (the value of the paid off home minus the equity in the marital home). This can be offset by other assets (there may be stocks, bonds, bank accounts, vehicles, etc that you can trade off).

Watch out for:
1. Make sure you're using a current appraisal on the paid off home. It will almost certainly be lower than even a couple of years ago, reducing the amount you owe).
2. Since he his taking over the marital home and mortgage, be sure to require him to refinance to get your name off the loan. Otherwise, it will still tie up your credit and you will be dragged in if he defaults.

But any decent attorney should be able to guide you through those things. If you are worried about having the cash to do this, most attorneys will give you a low cost or free initial consultation and will then petition the court to have his fees paid from marital funds.