Posted on January 2, 2010 by John Steele
A frequent question I receive often:
My x was order by the court in my divorce decree to refinance in 90 days to have my name removed from our joint property….or he has to sell with my coroperation….he said he was letting the property foreclose….what can i do to keep this from effecting my credit….my name is on everthing…he has not taken my name of the property as far as taxes, insurance, nothing….what can i do so that i will not be finacially responsible for this debt.
My answer:
In a word: Nothing. Technically, he is liable for loss you incur as a result of not following a valid court order. He agreed to refinance and he is not doing so. In the real world however, he is letting the home go into foreclosure, so he probably doesn’t have any money, and you can’t get blood from a stone. You chose to enter a mortgage with your spouse and in the mortgage paperwork, I can promise you that it states you are personally liable for the ENTIRE mortgage, even if your spouse never pays. That is why you must always be careful when agreeing to any debt involving a cosigner, or you are guaranteeing a loan for someone else. While this may seem unfair, it is not. If courts could force banks to change an agreement written in good faith because of a divorce, the entire banking system would collapse. Banks wouldn’t make loans out of fear of never getting paid, people would scam the system, getting divorces to get out of debt, and so on.
My thoughts on this issue:
The reality is no one wants to face the consequences of their own decisions. When you get a mortgage with someone else (normally a spouse), you are making a bet. You are betting that the other person will do as they promise and help pay the mortgage. If you bet right, you have someone else to help pay the mortgage and you get the benefit of owning a home. If you bet wrong, you have to pay the mortgage by yourself.
On a related note, Marriage is like a mortgage. You are betting that the person you are legally tying yourself to is a good person who will do the right thing regarding raising children, paying bills, honoring agreements, etc, etc. When people bet wrong, they get stuck with problems like paying the mortgage off alone, chasing the person for child support, fighting to see their own kids, etc. (I think I have the subject for my next post!)
Posted on January 2, 2010 by John Steele
A frequent question I receive often:
My x was order by the court in my divorce decree to refinance in 90 days to have my name removed from our joint property....or he has to sell with my coroperation....he said he was letting the property foreclose....what can i do to keep this from effecting my credit….my name is on everthing…he has not taken my name of the property as far as taxes, insurance, nothing….what can i do so that i will not be finacially responsible for this debt.
My answer:
In a word: Nothing. Technically, he is liable for loss you incur as a result of not following a valid court order. He agreed to refinance and he is not doing so. In the real world however, he is letting the home go into foreclosure, so he probably doesn’t have any money, and you can’t get blood from a stone. You chose to enter a mortgage with your spouse and in the mortgage paperwork, I can promise you that it states you are personally liable for the ENTIRE mortgage, even if your spouse never pays. That is why you must always be careful when agreeing to any debt involving a cosigner, or you are guaranteeing a loan for someone else. While this may seem unfair, it is not. If courts could force banks to change an agreement written in good faith because of a divorce, the entire banking system would collapse. Banks wouldn’t make loans out of fear of never getting paid, people would scam the system, getting divorces to get out of debt, and so on.
My thoughts on this issue:
The reality is no one wants to face the consequences of their own decisions. When you get a mortgage with someone else (normally a spouse), you are making a bet. You are betting that the other person will do as they promise and help pay the mortgage. If you bet right, you have someone else to help pay the mortgage and you get the benefit of owning a home. If you bet wrong, you have to pay the mortgage by yourself.
On a related note, Marriage is like a mortgage. You are betting that the person you are legally tying yourself to is a good person who will do the right thing regarding raising children, paying bills, honoring agreements, etc, etc. When people bet wrong, they get stuck with problems like paying the mortgage off alone, chasing the person for child support, fighting to see their own kids, etc. (I think I have the subject for my next post!)
]]>
Recent Comments