Divorce will mean some changes to your living situation. In many cases, a couple owns a home together, but they decide they’re just going to sell it during the divorce. This gives them both a fresh start and makes it easier to split up assets. If their home sells for more than they owed on it, they can simply divide the proceeds in half and move forward.
But there are other cases in which one person wants to keep their marital house. They may be able to offer their spouse other assets in exchange, such as giving up their claim to an inheritance or a retirement fund. If you decide to do this so that you can stay in the same home, does that mean you’ll have to refinance your mortgage?
Future payment obligations
It likely does, although your ex could theoretically agree to stay on the mortgage with you. But they probably won’t want to do that, because your mortgage lender isn’t concerned with whether you’re married or divorced. From their perspective, you and your ex are both individuals who agreed to pay that mortgage—and that obligation still remains, even after the end of the marriage, unless it is refinanced in your name only.
In other words, if you stopped paying your mortgage in five years, the mortgage lender could contact your ex for payment, and they would still be legally responsible. But if you refinance the mortgage into your own name, then you’re the only one who has to make the payments after the divorce. You still get to keep the house, and this fully separates your and your ex’s financial obligations.
Every divorce case is unique, so be sure you know exactly what legal steps you’ll have to take when going through property division and other parts of the process in ways that favorably reflect your distinct interests.