Dealing With the Family Home During Your Illinois Divorce

 Posted on October 19, 2020 in Divorce

Getting a divorce means you and your spouse will have to make quite a few decisions pertaining to you and your family’s finances and how you will separate them as you move through the divorce process. Many of these decisions will be difficult to make depending on what they are, but it is typically agreed that dealing with the marital home during your divorce is one of the hardest. Many people have an emotional attachment to their homes, especially if they have raised a family in the home. The property division process can be stressful and dealing with the family home can be especially daunting, but you can achieve a positive outcome with the assistance of a knowledgeable divorce attorney. 

Making the Decision About Your Home

During the property division process, you must determine how to untangle all of the finances you and your spouse have entangled throughout the years that you have been married. This includes determining what is and is not marital property, separating your joint bank accounts and credit card accounts, and splitting your retirement accounts. When it comes to dealing with a large asset such as the family home, there are three basic scenarios that make up the majority of situations involving this marital piece of property:

• Sell the Home and Split the Profits: The easiest thing to do when getting a divorce is to sell your home. It is the option that is likely to give you the least amount of headaches and it can actually end up getting you a little bit of money if you have equity in the home. Once you sell the home, you would split the proceeds in a specified manner, which may not always be in half.

• One Spouse Keeps the Home: In some situations, however, because of the emotional attachment that one party may have to a home, he or she may want to keep the home rather than selling it. One spouse can own the home, but to do this, he or she would have to qualify for refinancing with his or her own income, which is not always feasible for everyone. However, once the home is refinanced in one name, that spouse would have sole ownership.

• You Continue to Co-Own the Home: This option is not recommended in most circumstances. Some spouses may think that co-owning the home would be the best option for the children, but you must also consider your financial future. Even co-owning the home for a few years until the children are older can be risky. Once your divorce papers are signed by the judge, your divorce is finalized, and there is no guarantee that your spouse will cooperate when the time comes to deal with the house and mortgage payments, utilities, and maintenance. The best thing to do is to disentangle yourself from your spouse in every way before the divorce is final.

Our DuPage County Real Estate Division Attorney Can Help

It can be an internal struggle to make the best decision for you and your family when it comes to dealing with the marital home. You must be able to carefully and realistically weigh your ability to financially maintain the home by yourself against your sentimental reasons. At the Law Office of Ronald L. Hendrix, P.C., we understand how difficult it can be to decide what to do with the family home. Our knowledgeable Wheaton, IL real estate division lawyers can help you determine if it would be financially feasible for you to keep the home or if you should consider other options. To schedule a free consultation, contact our office today at 630-355-7776.

Sources:

https://www.nerdwallet.com/article/mortgages/how-to-split-home-value-in-divorce

https://www.bankrate.com/mortgages/what-to-know-about-divorce-and-mortgage/

https://www.ilga.gov/legislation/ilcs/ilcs5.asp?ActID=2086&ChapterID=59