settlement conference/divorce

[handy98632]

What is the name of your state? Washington

I just happen onto this site a day before my impending hearing as stated above. My ex has left and seperated from me since June 1, 2006. I have wished to keep the home that we had, and now she is wanting what the house is worth now...rather then what it was worth when she left. I have the entire time offered her her half of the equity of what the house was worth, but she repeatedly didn't take what i was offerering. She also signed a quit claim deed 2 months after she left, after i began having panic attacks and was not able to work for a month. Then in her note she left me, she had said that she is willing to pay half of the bills till things were final.

So tomorrow when i walk in, i my thoughts were:

- you get what the house was worth when you left

- if you want what the house is worth now, your paying your half of the bills that ive been paying on this entire time

Now washington state i know is a community property state...50/50...but i believe she deserves her half of what the house was worth then...not now. so i hope going in bull headed bout what im not budging on isn't a smart thing for me to do...

i came here looking for legal advise if what im doing is the right thing to do...my attorny thinks so, but id like to get some other opinions as well...

thanks in advance

Brian Handwerk

 

[LdiJ]

You may be being bullheaded, foolishly.

The market was up a year ago, it quite down now. Your home may actually be worth less than it was a year ago, or if you are lucky, may have remained stable.

She is entitled to 1/2 of the equity in the home.

 

[handy98632]

ok the house when she left was worth 108,000

she had it appraised last week...190.000

i was willing to give her her half but she refused up to now....which now leads me to believe she was wanting to wait and see what the house was worth. my laywer thought it was funny that she wouldn't take the money and rather waited for a settlement conference to settle this out, when i was in no way arguing anything at all...

doesn't help she commited adultry..cause in this state its still "you can divorce for whatever reason" but since she said she was willing to help pay for the bills with me till this was finished if anything, ill be strongly going after that. at least something for myself cause otherwise its going all her way...and that just isn't fair

 

[LdiJ]

ok the house when she left was worth 108,000

she had it appraised last week...190.000

i was willing to give her her half but she refused up to now....which now leads me to believe she was wanting to wait and see what the house was worth. my laywer thought it was funny that she wouldn't take the money and rather waited for a settlement conference to settle this out, when i was in no way arguing anything at all...

doesn't help she commited adultry..cause in this state its still "you can divorce for whatever reason" but since she said she was willing to help pay for the bills with me till this was finished if anything, ill be strongly going after that. at least something for myself cause otherwise its going all her way...and that just isn't fair

How did you come up with your figure? Because hers was done by an appraiser, and it would be hard for anyone to believe, in today's market, that any house could appreciate that much in 1 year.

 

[fairisfair]

what about the fact that he has a signed quit claim deed??? Wouldn't her interest in the home have ceased at that time??

 

[handy98632]

the first figure came about when i had the house appraised. my only question with the appraial she had done is that they houses were in a very high end area in longview. the houses didn't compare to mine. some are 2 stories with master bedrooms and jacuzi tubs...mine is a ranch house 3 bed 1 bath nothing big bout it at all other then its a corner lot 2 blocks from a school

 

[LdiJ]

the first figure came about when i had the house appraised. my only question with the appraial she had done is that they houses were in a very high end area in longview. the houses didn't compare to mine. some are 2 stories with master bedrooms and jacuzi tubs...mine is a ranch house 3 bed 1 bath nothing big bout it at all other then its a corner lot 2 blocks from a school

Ok...then I suggest that you get another appraisal done....because one of those two appraisals has to be way out of line....and you are going to need something to prove that.

Seriously, its critically important that you know the TRUE value of the home today. The huge differential between the two appraisals indicates that one of them is truly poorly done. You NEED to know which one that is.

 

[LdiJ]

what about the fact that he has a signed quit claim deed??? Wouldn't her interest in the home have ceased at that time??

No, not if it was part of the whole divorce/separation process.

 

[handy98632]

actually she went out of her way to do the quit claim deed...during my medical problems i wans't working and barely making ends meet. she wanted off the house so she wasn't financially obligated to the house(bankruptcy and all). I will ask the court appointed judge if he could appoint a appriaiser that has no interest in the case to do the appraisal and that i will pay for it, since i think the house was marked up purposely. her father also knows just about everyone in town and now suspect he got this guy in and put the price up higher on it. he has had shadey dealings, even in his own divorce and thats why i wonder if thats what happen. my sister who is a legal assistant just told me to keep my mouth shut, tell your laywer what your willing to do...and let her do the talking. which is what ill have to do, cause ive been very hurt by my ex and how she left me and emptied the house out and left me with not, and i had to rebuy everything...maybe it was smart of me to take pictures of the house when she took stuff huh?

 

[handy98632]

after she found out i was working and working a lot of OT, she refiled in the divorce that she wanted the equity in the house...which was at 108,000(her half of the equity would have been $18,500), and that was in sept. time chart

- She left June 1st, legally seperated
- quit claim deed Aug 20
- i refinanaced the following day
- Sept 10th she filed for divorce
- Dec 20th court hearing where she changed her mind at the last minute and wanted half of the equity in the house(at the time i had no lawyer cause we weren't arguing over the house, so i asked the judge that there might be time that i can find a laywer and see what my rights were)

 

[Ohiogal]

what about the fact that he has a signed quit claim deed??? Wouldn't her interest in the home have ceased at that time??

Nope. She would still have a marital interest if NOT an actual ownership interest.

 

[Ohiogal]

actually she went out of her way to do the quit claim deed...during my medical problems i wans't working and barely making ends meet. she wanted off the house so she wasn't financially obligated to the house(bankruptcy and all). I will ask the court appointed judge if he could appoint a appriaiser that has no interest in the case to do the appraisal and that i will pay for it, since i think the house was marked up purposely.

A quit claim deed does NOT remove her from the mortgage so if she were on the mortgage she is STILL financially responsible for the house.

 

[LdiJ]

A quit claim deed does NOT remove her from the mortgage so if she were on the mortgage she is STILL financially responsible for the house.

He said that he refinanced it the day after she gave him the quit claim deed.

 

[Ohiogal]

He said that he refinanced it the day after she gave him the quit claim deed.

Missed that. Sorry.

 

[LdiJ]

Missed that. Sorry.

When a thread moves fairly fast, everybody misses something.