Going through a divorce can be stressful. Divorce can overlap with home ownership issues and create mortgage issues or lead to foreclosure if you’re not attentive to what’s going on during your divorce or separation.
If you’re facing divorce, you need to understand your mortgage situation and how to avoid foreclosure, especially if you’re facing a contentious divorce. Staying on top of your mortgage situation is important to make sure that you don’t end up facing foreclosure during a divorce or separation.
Joshua Denbeaux is an experienced New Jersey foreclosure attorney. If you’re concerned that you may be headed towards foreclosure, it’s recommended that you contact a foreclosure attorney.
Contact Denbeaux Law today to learn more about how we may be able to help you.
Mortgage Payments During Divorce
How a home is involved in divorce depends on whether the house is a marital asset. If you and your spouse purchased the house during your marriage, it’s most likely considered a marital asset with both of your names on the title and deed.
With both names on the title and deed, you are both responsible for the debt. If someone’s name is on the deed and mortgage, they also have the right to live in the house, even if they’re not contributing to the mortgage.
If their name is on the mortgage and deed, your ex can stop paying the mortgage. Not making mortgage payments means they’re risking the home being foreclosed on, but not that you could kick them out of the house.
It’s important that you remember that if your name is on the mortgage and payments aren’t being made in full, you are at risk of foreclosure regardless fo whether or not you’re living in the home. Even if you are paying half of the mortgage, the mortgage company can go after you for foreclosure if it’s not paid in full.
Legal Options
Typically, home ownership will be determined as part of the divorce agreement. Before your divorce is finalized, make sure that you take care of yourself during the separation period and keep up with mortgage payments.
Being separated doesn’t automatically separate your finances, which means you could be at risk. During this time, your finances and home, like your mortgage, are likely still combined.
If your ex isn’t contributing to your mortgage during separation, you could take legal action for a breach of contract. When suing for a breach of contract, the claim would be that your ex agreed to pay a certain amount towards your mortgage. If successful, they may be issued a court order to pay what they owe towards the mortgage.
A property partition lawsuit is another legal option you could pursue if your ex isn’t paying the mortgage. With a partition action, you can seek the court to force the sale of the property.
Pursuing legal action can be complex, costly, and time-consuming. It’s recommended that you work with an attorney for any legal action, but if you can avoid legal actions before divorce proceedings, that’s typically the easiest option.
Facing Foreclosure During Divorce
While it’s always best to avoid foreclosure issues, the contentious nature of many relationships during the period leading up to divorce can make it hard to know what’s going on with your mortgage payments. If you find yourself in a situation where payments aren’t being made in full, or your ex is no longer contributing, and you can’t handle payments on your own, there are still other options.
Even if you’re not planning on keeping the home after your divorce is finalized, not making payments and going into foreclosure will hurt your credit and may negatively impact your ability to be financially secure and independent after the divorce.
Options to stop foreclosure during divorce could include:
Choosing the right option if you’re facing foreclosure during a divorce depends on your overall strategy in divorce and your financial plans. Speaking with an attorney about options to stop foreclosure can help you determine what’s best for you.
Contact a Foreclosure Attorney
If you’re struggling with your mortgage, especially if you’re going through a divorce and, your ex is making the process more difficult, and you think you may be headed towards foreclosure, it’s important to contact an attorney.
A foreclosure attorney can help you work through your options to avoid foreclosure. An experienced attorney may be able to provide you with more options to help you through your specific situation.
Contact Joshua Denbeaux today to learn more about the foreclosure process and how we may be able to help you.
