Introduction
If the usual stress of selling your home and moving isn’t difficult enough, the added stress of doing so during, or after divorce is often a staggering undertaking.
But is selling the home the correct answer?
No – not always. There are a number of very valid reasons why the marital home should remain with one spouse, including providing stability for the children. One, or both spouses may prefer to keep the marital home, yet that process can also create added stress where the desire to keep the home leads to conflict or worry over what options a spouse has available to buy out the marital home, which are often far more complicated than your initial purchase of the home as spouses.
Choosing a real estate agent to handle matters related to the marital home in divorce is actually more complex than you may think – so no, this is not a job for your regular neighborhood Realtor, a relative, friend or the agent who sold you the home. Very few real estate agents have received the proper training, education and certifications to handle the disposition of real estate in divorce, so your search for an agent needs to ensure you are only considering candidates with a recognized designation, like the RCS-D – or Real Estate Collaboration Specialist in Divorce. There are complex legal, taxation, ethical, privacy and other issues that only a specialist is qualified to handle, and only by working with an agent who holds the RCS-D, are you getting a complete team who works in partnership with your Family Law Attorney, and includes a Certified Divorce Mortgage Planner, a financial planner, a home inspector, an appraiser, and a title and escrow agent who all work together to help answer these common questions:
- Can one (or both) spouses buy out the home? If yes or no, what is the next step?
- How does the divorce settlement need to be structured to allow for a spouse to buy-out the home? What are the financial requirements?
- Do you really want to keep the marital home – are you aware of any current structural or other issues the home may have? What are the cost of these repairs and how should those costs be divided?
- Does the home have any lien or title issues? Did one spouse deliberately create a lien to siphon off the equity? Or is a lien present on the home through an accidentally forgotten expense, or fraud by an unrelated party?
With these common questions answered, both spouses have a pathway to make decisions based on facts and accurate information, and to better understand what IS possible, rather than what they may think, or hope is possible. Making decisions with factual information and the guidance of professionals can reduce stress, reduce conflict and lead to a more collaborative outcome that benefits all parties.
Other factors to consider when selecting a professional to handle real estate matters in divorce include:
1. Soft skills such as conflict resolution
2. Excellent communication skills
3. Absolute integrity and high ethical standards
4. Market knowledge and a solid marketing plan to sell the home quickly for the highest possible price to enable the divorcing spouses to retain maximum equity, and move on quickly
5. Personality – do your personalities work well together? Do you like and trust the agent you are considering to help you?
The Right Process
Ignore solicitations from real estate agents who triumphantly declare they can get your home sold. You haven’t even made that decision yet! Just selling your home far oversimplifies what is needed, either for an equity buyout by one spouse, or the sale of the home followed by the purchase or rental of new homes by each spouse. We have an established process and methodology that sets everyone on a pathway to success, with less stress.
Step 1 – Divorce Mortgage Planning
In this private, confidential and no-cost session, you’ll meet with a Certified Divorce Lending Partner, with specialized training and knowledge specific to mortgage lending when divorce is involved. Lenders have very different rules and requirements for lending to spouses undergoing, or recently divorced, so this session will include a worksheet that reviews different scenarios such as buying out your current home, or buying a new home, the income required, and the type, length or amount of support income that is required, which you will share with your Family Law Attorney who will integrate this into their settlement negotiation. This helps answer the questions – can you buyout the marital home, or afford to buy another home based on the proposed settlement?
Step 2 – Vetting the Home
In this session, also at no-cost, we will work together to look closely at the marital home to help answer the question – if you could buyout the home, do you really want to? Our process will include checking the property’s title for issues and liens, and completing a home inspection (there is inspection fee paid directly to the home inspector, usually $400) and insurance claim check. If issues arise from the home inspection, and you still want to buyout the home, the cost of repair estimate will be shared with your Family Law Attorney who can negotiate for these costs to be divided in the settlement.
Step 3 – Your Financial Health
An optional service, you may may choose to meet with one of our financial planning partners. In your planning session, you’ll undergo a deep dive with your finances, proposed settlement, and your goals and expectations to create a budget and financial plan for living post-divorce, and make important decisions about housing costs. This session helps answer the question – you could buyout the home, but should you?
Next Steps
We work directly with you and your Family Law Attorney or Mediator – so to move forward, please email or call, or request your Attorney give us a call, and we can schedule a consultation to get started.
Phone: (949) 407-7709
