SHE isn't asking because she's on her honeymoon with her second husband.
"I" am asking as a concerned mother, hoping to help remove any unnecessary stress from her life.
Yes, her name is still on the title... which is probably my main question. How can we get her name removed? My understanding is the divorce papers state he retains "custody" of the house (i.e... he is living in it while she is in an apartment) and it will eventually be sold; any proceeds will be split between them, likewise any loss.
We feel since he is living in the house, he should be making the payments solely. Which is why we are inquiring how to go about removing her from any responsibility for it.
Typically, the person who lives in the house would be responsible for paying the mortgage and other expenses.
This should have been addressed in the divorce. I really wish people wouldn't leave open issues like this. In particular, if I had my way, almost no one would ever have "the house will be sold some day and we'll split the proceeds" clauses.
How long ago was the divorce? That may affect the ability to get a modification.
More importantly, is this an issue that she and her ex can work out? For example, does he have the resources to buy out her share and refinance her off the mortgage? That would be the ideal solution. If that's not possible, she may have to go back to court to order the house sold, but that's not an ideal solution for lots of reasons (including the one that the court may not even grant the request).
The best solution will always be one that they can work out between themselves. If that doesn't work, it's going to be hard to come up with a forced solution that makes everyone happy - particularly if there's not a lot of equity in the house.
If there's equity in the house, there may be an option that could work even if he doesn't want to sell and can't afford to buy the house. Let's say the home is worth $200 K and there's a $100 K mortgage. In order to get her completely clear, he'd have to refinance for $150 K - $100 K to pay off the mortgage and $50 K for her. Everyone would be clear and her name would be off the mortgage and title. If that's not possible, they could consider him borrowing $100 K to refinance the mortgage and giving her a note for $50 K, payable with interest. If I were her, I'd certainly insist on a lien on the home in that case, but at least it would clarify things a bit.
Anyway, there are a lot of options and you'd need to provide more detail to sort them out.
