If you and your spouse are getting divorced and you own a home, then you’ll need to determine what to do with it if the state considers to be community property rather than separate property.
A number of things make the family home a bit more complicated than most other assets. For example, you can’t just cut it in two and each take half. Further, homes tend to have a lot more personal meaning and memories attached to them, good and bad, than purely financial assets. Here are some options for handling the house.
Sell it
If you sell your home, you should be left with a sum of money once you have paid off any outstanding loans on the property. By doing this, you end up with a financial rather than physical asset, which is much easier to split.
“Trade” the house
Let’s say your spouse wants to retain the house, and you have no interest in challenging them for it. You can instead trade them the house for an equivalent value of other assets. Remember, though, that you are talking about the current value of the house minus the remaining amount left on the mortgage.
Continue to own it together
You are not obligated to sell the house. If you have the financial means to hold onto it while still being able to afford another place to live, then retaining it might be an option. Couples sometimes do this if one spouse will stay there with the children but cannot afford it on their own or if the market suggests a future sale could be more sensible than an immediate one.
With appropriate legal guidance to learn more about these options, you can increase the chances of making the best decision for your future.