In many cases, a home counts as a marital asset. For instance, perhaps you and your spouse got married 10 years ago. You lived in an apartment for the first year, and then you purchased a house. Some people do buy homes prior to getting married, of course, but it’s very common for married couples to buy them jointly.
This means that something has to be done with the home during property division if the couple is getting divorced. One of the easiest ways to do this is just to sell that house. You and your ex can then split up however much money you make.
But what if you want to keep the house? Are there any options where you don’t have to sell?
You could buy the other half
The first option is to buy the other half of the home from your spouse. They will probably want you to refinance the mortgage so they won’t be liable for any payments in the future. But if you do, you can then take over the mortgage as the sole owner of the home, and you can trade other marital assets – such as a retirement account, vacation property or investment portfolio – to them in exchange for the house.
You could continue being co-owners
Another thing to remember is that the two of you could continue being joint owners even after you get divorced. There are some cases in which parents will do this, for example, to allow their children to keep living in the house. If your children are in high school, you and your spouse may agree that you can keep the home until they graduate.
Determining what to do with marital assets can become complex. Be sure you know exactly what legal steps to take.