Divorce question

[tbraquet]

What is the name of your state? Texas

I have been married 6 yrs. My wife is disabled, receives SSI disability, but works part time. We bought a house in Dec. the down payment was a gift from my parents to me. My question is if we get a divorce will she be entitled to anything to do with house. Will I have to pay her anything since I will be the one staying in the house? We did not use any of "our" money to buy the house.

Also, I have heard that in Texas a disabled spouse is entitled to spousal support. Is this true, and are there any stipulations?

 

[Bali Hai]

What is the name of your state? Texas

I have been married 6 yrs. My wife is disabled, receives SSI disability, but works part time. We bought a house in Dec. the down payment was a gift from my parents to me. My question is if we get a divorce will she be entitled to anything to do with house. Will I have to pay her anything since I will be the one staying in the house? We did not use any of "our" money to buy the house.

Also, I have heard that in Texas a disabled spouse is entitled to spousal support. Is this true, and are there any stipulations?

I have HEARD that if the "gift money" from your parents to YOU, is tracable, a good lawyer can convince the court that it is separate property.

I would expect the court to order alimony. I don't know what you mean by "stipulations". A stipulation is agreeing to something in open court.

I recommend that you don't do that unless you know for sure it would be in your best interest rather than handing the case to the judge for a decision.

 

[mistoffolees]

What is the name of your state? Texas

I have been married 6 yrs. My wife is disabled, receives SSI disability, but works part time. We bought a house in Dec. the down payment was a gift from my parents to me. My question is if we get a divorce will she be entitled to anything to do with house. Will I have to pay her anything since I will be the one staying in the house? We did not use any of "our" money to buy the house.

Also, I have heard that in Texas a disabled spouse is entitled to spousal support. Is this true, and are there any stipulations?

Alimony will be determined by the court. 6 years isn't very long, but her disability will be an issue. But since she is receiving SSI AND working, it may not be all that bad.

The issue with the house will depend on whether you used marital income for any of the expenses - upkeep, taxes, improvements, etc. If so, you're likely to have to split the marital portion of the equity.

 

[penelope10]

What is the name of your state? Texas

I have been married 6 yrs. My wife is disabled, receives SSI disability, but works part time. We bought a house in Dec. the down payment was a gift from my parents to me. My question is if we get a divorce will she be entitled to anything to do with house. Will I have to pay her anything since I will be the one staying in the house? We did not use any of "our" money to buy the house.

Also, I have heard that in Texas a disabled spouse is entitled to spousal support. Is this true, and are there any stipulations?

Spousal Maintenance can be awarded to a spouse in TX for several reasons.The general duration is three years in normal circumstances. HOWEVER this period can be extended if the spouse receiving the maintenance is found to be disabled. You can google the Tx Family code Chapter 8 Maintenance. Disability I believe, falls under section 8.054. You should probably speak with an attorney that has expertise in Family law as to whether your ex would qualify for more than three years under the definition of disability (as she does work part time). Don't know if you would be required to pay for longer than the three year period. An attorney should.

As far as the gift...do you have proof that this was given as a gift to you by your parents?

As you probably know Tx is a community property state. Your wife would normally be entitled to 1/2 equity of the marital home accrued since the time of marriage. And she would also be liable for 1/2 of any marital debt.

 

[LdiJ]

One thing that has been overlooked is that the house was only purchased in Dec. Therefore, unless the gift from his parents was one darned big gift, the house is unlikely to have ANY equity at this point.

However, if her name is on the mortgage, he is going to have to refinance to take her off.

 

[tbraquet]

I do have proof of the gift. When we bought the house I had to fill out paperwork stating it was a gift and my parents had to sign the paperwork. How do you figure what is the equity in the house? I am still paying PMI in order to get to the 20% of the value.
As to the support, would I have to pay it if she did not want it?

 

[tbraquet]

Her name is not on the mortgage, only the deed. She was not considered in the mortgage process at all.

 

[penelope10]

I do have proof of the gift. When we bought the house I had to fill out paperwork stating it was a gift and my parents had to sign the paperwork. How do you figure what is the equity in the house? I am still paying PMI in order to get to the 20% of the value.
As to the support, would I have to pay it if she did not want it?

I believe the maximum amount allowed under the law is $2500.00 per month.(Without looking the code up myself). As I stated you really need to speak with a family law attorney in regards to the spousal maintenance.

To come up with the value to the home you can get an appraisal done. It is within your wife's rights to have a separate appraisal done as well. These issues can also be dealt with when you speak to an attorney regarding the spousal maintenance issues.

 

[penelope10]

Alimony will be determined by the court. 6 years isn't very long, but her disability will be an issue. But since she is receiving SSI AND working, it may not be all that bad.

The issue with the house will depend on whether you used marital income for any of the expenses - upkeep, taxes, improvements, etc. If so, you're likely to have to split the marital portion of the equity.

There is no alimony in the state of TX. Not trying to be rude, just no such animal here. LOL it's called spousal maintenance and meant usually only to be a temporary award.

 

[LdiJ]

Her name is not on the mortgage, only the deed. She was not considered in the mortgage process at all.

That simplifies things to a great extent. However she will have to sign a quit claim deed to be taken off the deed.

You should have a real estate appraiser do an appraisal on the home. The difference between the mortgage balance and the appraised value is your equity.

On the paper your parents signed regarding the gift.....by any chance did it specify both you and your wife's name? If it did, then its not a separate gift to you.

 

[tbraquet]

That simplifies things to a great extent. However she will have to sign a quit claim deed to be taken off the deed.

You should have a real estate appraiser do an appraisal on the home. The difference between the mortgage balance and the appraised value is your equity.

On the paper your parents signed regarding the gift.....by any chance did it specify both you and your wife's name? If it did, then its not a separate gift to you.

The house was appraised when we bought the house. Would it have to be appraised again being such a short time?

On the paperwork for the gift. It only showed my name. It was two gifts, one from my father and one from my mother. This was done in order to get around the federal taxes for gifts. We did it this way after looking at the IRS documents online.

 

[LdiJ]

The house was appraised when we bought the house. Would it have to be appraised again being such a short time?

On the paperwork for the gift. It only showed my name. It was two gifts, one from my father and one from my mother. This was done in order to get around the federal taxes for gifts. We did it this way after looking at the IRS documents online.

Yes, it would need to be appraised again. The market has changed so drastically over the last six months that the second appraisal is really important.

Also...its great that the gift was in your name only, and is so traceable. If the equity ends up being less than your gift, then that makes things a lot better for you.

 

[tbraquet]

Thanks for the info, it helps me allot. In addition to the house she has a car that is in my name on the title and the loan. In your opinion how do you think I would come out on this whole deal, house, car, etc? I understand talking to family lawyer is always best. I just am trying to get an idea of what to expect before moving forward with this.

Oh one more thing, what would you think I would have to pay in alimony if anything at all?

 

[penelope10]

Thanks for the info, it helps me allot. In addition to the house she has a car that is in my name on the title and the loan. In your opinion how do you think I would come out on this whole deal, house, car, etc? I understand talking to family lawyer is always best. I just am trying to get an idea of what to expect before moving forward with this.

Oh one more thing, what would you think I would have to pay in alimony if anything at all?

I can't give you a figure regarding spousal maintenance. As I said there is no Alimony awarded in TX. It's called spousal maintenance. Generally a short time thing. As I suggested you can look up the family code I gave you. It should provide answers as to for what reasons spousal maintenance is ordered and the term of spousal maintenance.

As far as the cars go. If there are two cars it is most likely that she will be awarded one. If she is you will need to think about how to address it if the car is financed in your name. If it's owned free and clear there should be no problem. Other things to think about and talk about should you decide to move forward and hire an attorney.
about should you decide to move forward and hire an attorney.

 

[tbraquet]

I am looking at the info about spousal support. I forgot to mention she has a CD worth about $15k that she had before we married. Would this possibly play a factor in determining support?