When undergoing a divorce, there is likely a concern as to how to handle the marital home, should this apply in your case. Many people feel that when they are divorcing, that there are only two options available when dealing with the marital home – one spouse retains the home or the house must be sold. However, there are a variety of things to think about when choosing to divide a home. For example, these are contingent upon whether there is a financial encumbrance of the home. If the home has no mortgage, which vastly decreases the spouse’s monthly expenses, which in turn decreases other financial needs such as spousal support while increasing the value of the asset. Hence, if you believe you will be required to pay spousal support, you may choose to offer your spouse to remain in the marital home so as to decrease their monthly expenses and decrease the amount of spousal support that you will have to pay.
Conversely, if the home does have a mortgage, the couple should think about the balance of the mortgage in comparison to the value of the house. If the value of the home is less than the outstanding mortgage balance, then there will be no proceeds available to split between the parties and they will owe an outstanding debt that must be paid. Furthermore, in the event of a mortgage balance and you wish to keep the home, you will need to determine whether you will be able to support the payments and upkeep of the home without financial assistance by your spouse. If not, then you should consider selling the home.
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We have law offices in Orlando and practice in Orange, Seminole, Osceola, Lake, Brevard,and Volusia counties. To schedule a free initial consultation with an attorney, you can call our office at 1-888-640-2999.
Beryl Thompson-McClary
390 N. Orange Ave., Suite #2300
Orlando, Florida 32801
Tel: 1-888-640-2999
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