I Own A House And Want To Divorce My Spouse In Florida. What Are My Options For Splitting The House?

Assuming that house is marital property and not separate property, you have four basic options for splitting the house if you decide to divorce.

First, you can sell the house and split the proceeds during your divorce. If you decide to sell the house, you will want to work hard to maximize the selling price, which may mean doing repairs before it is sold.

Before deciding to sell, you should consider how much you will receive after paying off the mortgage and the costs of selling. Also, you may divide the proceeds 50-50, but you may not, depending on the divorce settlement you two reach.

Another choice is for you to keep the house, and you buy out your spouse’s interest in the house, or your spouse keeps the house and buys out your interest. If you decide to keep the house, you need to consider whether you can afford the house on your income only. Also, will you be able to refinance the house with your income only and your credit score?

If your spouse wants the house and wants to buy you out, you need to consider whether your spouse can refinance the home in his or her name only. If you are not taken off the mortgage, your spouse could quit paying, which can hurt your credit score. In addition, if you already have one mortgage in your name it may be difficult to qualify for another to buy your own house.

A less commonly-used option is to retain ownership of the house. Most divorcing couples choose to either sell the house or title it to one spouse in order to make a clean break, but some couples keep the house in both names.

They may choose to rent it out, or one spouse may live there and pay the other rent. This can be a good option if the spouses aren’t ready to make a decision, or if the housing market is temporarily depressed.

There are financial, legal, and tax ramifications of each of your options. You should speak with an attorney about your legal options.