will i owe him any equity in the future

[robertorobo31]

What is the name of your state (only U.S. law)?Fl. On march 08 a judgement of dissolution of marriage was granted BETWEEN MY EX AND I . The agreement stated in regards to the marital home, I(the wife) were to have sole possesion and occupancy of the home as well as any financial obligation of the home were to be my respobsibility. apon eventual sale of the home,(no time frame given) i were to pay the morgage and split any net equity, if any, 50/50. Three months later(june 08) my ex husband quit claim the deed over to me in fear that his financial mess will comprise the house since he was still on the morgage as well as the deed . until now the morgage is under both of our names and the title is soley under my name.The home is about 70k under water so therefore i haven't been able to refinance it soley under my name. Recently he has been calling me and asking me to sell the house and give him his share .My question is since he quit claim the deed over to me is he still entitle to any monies? and does the divorce agreement still stands in court ?, if i were to sell the house and there were by any miracle some equity ?

 

[mistoffolees]

The quit claim does not absolve you of the obligation to pay your ex his share of the equity.

If you sell the home and it sells for less than you owe, then you don't owe him anything. If it sells for more than you owe, he gets half.

I really wish people would avoid these types of agreements. Let's say the come is currently worth $200 K and you owe $250 K. Now, let's say you keep the home for 20 years, pay off the mortgage and the home is worth $300 K. You would still owe your ex $150 K - or 60% of the original mortgage (which you've paid off). The incentive for you to keep the house, fix it up, and pay the mortgage is greatly reduced.

While it's too late for you (*), I strongly believe that in most cases, continuing obligations wrt property settlement are a bad idea since they lead to disproportionate problems like this.

* If the home is truly underwater, you could go to court to revise the agreement. Or, perhaps give your ex $1 and have him sign (and preferably notarize) a document stating that your obligation to give him 50% of the home equity under the divorce decree has been fulfilled (that is different than a quit claim). I THINK that would work, but Ohiogal or someone else will have to say for sure if that would be acceptable. However, the fact that your ex is asking for his share indicates that he apparently doesn't agree that it's underwater, so he may not go along.

In the end, your best bet might be to sell the place and start over.

 

[LdiJ]

The quit claim does not absolve you of the obligation to pay your ex his share of the equity.

If you sell the home and it sells for less than you owe, then you don't owe him anything. If it sells for more than you owe, he gets half.

I really wish people would avoid these types of agreements. Let's say the come is currently worth $200 K and you owe $250 K. Now, let's say you keep the home for 20 years, pay off the mortgage and the home is worth $300 K. You would still owe your ex $150 K - or 60% of the original mortgage (which you've paid off). The incentive for you to keep the house, fix it up, and pay the mortgage is greatly reduced.

While it's too late for you (*), I strongly believe that in most cases, continuing obligations wrt property settlement are a bad idea since they lead to disproportionate problems like this.

* If the home is truly underwater, you could go to court to revise the agreement. Or, perhaps give your ex $1 and have him sign (and preferably notarize) a document stating that your obligation to give him 50% of the home equity under the divorce decree has been fulfilled (that is different than a quit claim). I THINK that would work, but Ohiogal or someone else will have to say for sure if that would be acceptable. However, the fact that your ex is asking for his share indicates that he apparently doesn't agree that it's underwater, so he may not go along.

In the end, your best bet might be to sell the place and start over.

However, if its really 70k underwater then that means a short sale, which will have a significant negative impact on your credit score.