ON Canada - you need to see your lawyer on this. My experience with a past client, as this issue will arise for a property co-owned after a divorce, they were advised to sell the property, split the profit and part ways. A lawyer would be able to give you a better opinion on this matter.

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We were married 10/12/03. without warning last may, my husband stated he loved me but was not in love with me and four hours later moved back with his parents at the age of 35. he admitted his own fault, willingness to give up everything, agreed to pay for the first on the mortgage; in other words he felt guilty and he did not want me to suffer because of his choice and unwillingness to marriage counsel ling. now that i am asking for alimony because we are losing the house that i am living in do to his not paying his prior verbal agreement of the first and i cannot afford to rent with my salary alone, he got a consultation by an attorney telling him that he was not legally responsible for alimony because of our short marriage. is this true? another counsel statement was that i would be responsible for half of the legal fee. is this true?

If the mortgage is in both names, then both parties are legally responsible for said debt. Any debt incurred during marriage in the couples names is split down the middle.

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House has both husband and wife on deed. husband has mortgage solely in his name and credit. few months ago husband refinanced house for a larger amount to pay down debts. wife then moved out of the house into an apartment of her own and filed for a divorce. wife doesn't have income or creditworthiness to refinance or pay for house. husband wants to remain living in home and continue to pay mortgage. house appraisal value is the same dollar amount as the loan/mortgage amount. wife wants her share of equity out of the house. does she have any "leg to stand on" so to speak and what could one reasonably expect her to "get" out of this house? how does a judge divide equity in a house that doesn't have any? buy out doesn't seem an option because loan is already soley in husband's name. husband doesn't want to sell property. there is a pre-payoff penalty on mortgage. is wife responsible for half of this penalty? how someone thinks the wife who left, no longer lived in the home, no longer payed for it, did not contribute to the maintenance or upkeep to the home nor it’s appreciation in the years following the divorce but thinks the wife should get 50% of the future sale value

My ex husband did the same thing and I fell for it! It is a common ploy to make sure wife gets nothing. It *seems* logical, doesn't it? There is nothing for her to get so she doesn't push for anything. Yes. she has a "leg to stand on." She needs a *good* attorney. At a *minimum*, she should ask for 50% of the future sale of the property. (Are you *sure* she is still on the deed? Or, did he trick her into signing off the deed when he re-mortgaged?) Also, she can ask for a settlement or payments. The wife *should* get her share of the equity of the house and it is most likely that the judge will support this request. Just because the husband doesn't have the money doesn't mean he doesn't owe her the money! Get a *good* attorney! ADDED: You don't get it. She could ask that she get the house and *you* keep paying for it! And, if she has *any* good reason for leaving to bring before the judge (Like physical abuse, financial irresponsibility, emotional distancing, etc.) she would get it! So... 50% of future equity is *better* for you than her getting *100%* of future equity! Right? Not so crazy!

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This question applies to interpretation of the wisconsin community property laws with regards to marriage/ divorce: if one party (woman) has a house prior to getting married, and the mortgage isn't completely paid off yet, when she gets married then my understanding is the house would be her separate property. however, since she doesn’t own the property outright yet and still has to make payments on the mortgage - would the husband then be able to claim the house was community property in the event of a divorce down the road? for ex purposes, lets say the wife still had 15 years left on the mortgage, she made all the payments herself (though i'm not sure if that matters since her income would be apparently half his too) including principle, interest, insurance, repairs etc. and they got divorced 10 years after getting married and raising 3 children in the house. saying it another way, chronologically - say she buys the house in 1990, makes payments for 5 years while her boyfriend (future husband) lives with her rent free all that time. in 1995 they get married with this house as their primary residence. she continues making payments with income earned from her job. the husband has a few low paying jobs, but stays home when they have their first child to be the caretaker since the wifes job pays more. in 2005 the wife files for a divorce when she finds out the husband has been cheating on her. at that point she would have been paying the mortgage for fifteen years, ten of which while married. if the husband were say 40 years old at this point, being the primary caretaker for their 3 children - would he have any rights to the house, spousal support or be able to receive alimony? is there a certain number of years they would have to be together for alimony, or how does the judge look at making that determination? how would a court look at that situation if the husband is trying to get partial ownership of the house as compensation for being a stay at home dad (and say he wasn't a professional - had no degree, was working at a gas station and would've rather stayed at home with the kids than make $6 an hour)? would it matter that they were already in a relationship and living together when she originally bought the house, though not yet married? thank you carey, that did help. you said the courts consider whether he put off his career to be a caretaker. i'm wondering how they interpret that. couldn't everyone say they put off their "career" to take care of the kids to try and squeeze out a higher alimony - even if their career was gas station clerk? does the court view career as college educated? i guess i'm wondering in depth what goes into their decision when they choose to award alimony. if one partner chooses to stay and be with the kids and the other partner agrees (but would really rather they worked and helped out the family with a second income) then it seems like the partner who provides the sole income is getting screwed. i say that because it sounds like once they "agree" to the other partner staying home, it may eventually come back to bite them in the form of the courts requiring that spouse to pay alimony when they were originally being nice by saying they would be the sole income against their will.

Generally in community property states the courts cannot touch separate property period. In Texas for instance the Texas constitution makes this very clear Now, he may be able to seek contribution which would mean that he would get some money out of the house , but he cannot get ownership. It will be very Wisconsin law dependent. As far as alimony goes, yes maybe, it will depend on many factors, length of marrieage, his ability to go out and support himself etc, faithfulness of the spouse, whether he put off his career to care for the children. Thats how it works in texas anyway and we are a community property state as well. I hope this was helpful.

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I've been in this terrible marriage for 9 1/2 years, no kids. we're in our mid-30s now. my husband tells everyone that i will "never leave him" because "i need him". he is a truck driver and spends most of his money on himself, and there is not much left to pay the bills. the last 3 weeks he spent about 250 dollars on cash advance each week! last friday i had to pay electric, water and phone bill and didn't have enough. i work but i also go to school, so i make little money and still have to pay for my school. i had to take the little money i was saving to put into the bills. this is financial abuse, isn't it? anyway, i am really wanting to move out and file for divorce. i need a full time job and i put zillions of applications this past month and nobody called yet. i am getting so desperate now. i need to find me an apartment (studio be fine), and a small used car so i can get on with my life. i don't even know how to start! i don't have family members in the u.s. (yes, i am a u.s. citizen) to help me. everything we have is in his name, car and mortgage and bills. we only have 1 joint bank account, but i also have 1 bank account alone to put my money away. this seems like a never ending problem, i tried counseling, he didn't care about it, i tried everything, to work out the problems, no communication, lies and lies, bunch of money spending, etc. so i'm fed up and i'm ready to move on with my life. so could you help me figure out what i can do? do i have any rights as a wife at this point, after almost 10 years of marriage (no kids)? i feel like i'm in a prison! thank you!

Wait til it's to pay the bills an he's leaving for the road,let him leave take an pack up some clothes an personals,soap,shampoo etc...,take the bill $ your clothes ,get the phone book an look up women' s crisis center,tell them he abuses you an he just left for work,they will pick you up.An give you a place to sleep food a lawyer that will help you divorce him an take all of his stuff give it to you,an lock him up for hurting you,all this they will do for free,call them I promise they will help you,but first you gotta pick up the phone.

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The ex-wife willingly defaulted on an automobile that was in my husband's name solely, right after the final dd went through. husband tried to explain to debt collectors that it was his ex-wife who agreed in the final divorce decree to hold husband " harmless of any debts" pertaining to this automobile. now, they have filed suit against him in civil court. only him. obviously we do not have the extra monies to retain legal advice, so that is why i am at work now, typing this in a rush, seeking advice. can they really sue him if he is to be held harmless to this debt? can they come after me, his current wife? we have ample evidence that proves that the ex-wife is to pay on this automobile loan and hold husband " harmless." he even tried to tell the debt collection agency, but they did not want to listen or even see the agreement. i need the truth here, and serious answers only. debt for automobile is 14k. we are in the state of florida. what can they go after if they win? husband still has a joint mortgage with the ex-wife, can they place a lien on the home instead? thank you, very much. added: in the final divorce decree, my husband was to be held "harmless" of this existing debt. the ex-wife signed off on it. is that not enough? added: loan debt was not sold before final divorce decree, but after. ex-wife defaulted on it, 4 months after the divorce because she was offered a "free" automobile by family. yes, being held "harmless" to this debt is written in the decree. thanks guys. yes, the ex-wife let the car go without paying. they took it from her. i want to go shove this summos down her lying, lazy throat. jk (kind of) can they come after my assests as well now that i am his current spouse? this is a big question here. yes, the ex-wife let the car go without paying. they took it from her. i want to go shove this summos down her lying, lazy throat. jk (kind of) can they come after my assests as well now that i am his current spouse? this is a big question here.

I'm NOT a lawyer and I can NOT make any guarantees, but... If there is a court order that states that this Debt is to be carried by the ex-wife, there SHOULD be no problem in convincing the car loan provider that this loan is not to be carried by him. Unfortunately it sounds like the debt has been sold from the Car Loan Provider to a debt collector. This debt collector has gotten HIS name. The loan debt was sold to the debt collector BEFORE the agreement of "harmless of any debt" was written up. Therefore by the time the Car Loan provider sold the debt to the collection agency it was HIS problem to deal with. Depending on state laws, court documents related to the divorce and the exact dates that the several steps took place, i suspect that you'd be able to get it clarified if/when it came to a trial. I strongly advise to find a lawyer to put this right for you. If you battle it yourself, it might become difficult, with someone that has experience on your side, you might be able to find the holes in their story. Good Luck!

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My husband has been named as a defendant in a civil lawsuit. this is what is unbelievable. the ex-wife willingly defaulted on an automobile that was in my husband's name solely, right after the final dd went through. husband tried to explain to debt collectors that it was his ex-wife who agreed in the final divorce decree to hold husband " harmless of any debts" pertaining to this automobile. now, they have filed suit against him in civil court. only him. obviously we do not have the extra monies to retain legal advice, so that is why i am at work now, typing this in a rush, seeking advice. can they really sue him if he is to be held harmless to this debt? can they come after me, his current wife? we have ample evidence that proves that the ex-wife is to pay on this automobile loan and hold husband " harmless." he even tried to tell the debt collection agency, but they did not want to listen or even see the agreement. i need the truth here, and serious answers only. debt for automobile is 14k. we are in the state of florida. what can they go after if they win? husband still has a joint mortgage with the ex-wife, can they place a lien on the home instead? thank you, very much. the ex-wife willingly let the car go, 4 months after the final divorce decree went through. her family offered her a "free ride", literally. ( like she does not already get one.) sadly, i came in to the picture one month after the final divorce decree went through. his lawyer was pathetic and should have pushed the ex to put all that she wanted, in her name alone before signing off on anything. i agree, 101%.

I'll tell you from experience, that divorce decree is worthless. Its does NOT have the power to set aside legally binding contracts such as car loans or mortgages etc. Your husband is liable for the debt, and has two paths of recourse. Take the car back into his possession first, hopefully its still in his name only. Then either sell the car and pay off the loan. OR Start making payments on the car bringing it up to date. ALWAYS, always, when you get divorced, CLOSE ALL joint accounts, and have new financing made by whom ever gets encumbered assets. He is in deep trouble for the mortgage as well if he is on the note. He IS liable for any default. If the EX files for bankruptcy, he will go under like the Titanic. That's what happened to me. SUX! If both parties are on the title to the home, either can force the other to sell or refinance the mortgage into the others name only. Act fast, no one will or can cover your high-knee but YOU. If they are unsuccessful with the car loan they SHOULD just repossess the car. They still have the right to go after the person who took the loan out if the sale of the asset does not cover the amount outstanding on the loan. If they should win they can still take the car, BUT the catch is the hubby will still be liable for any loss the bank takes. Catch 22! So they can attach his wages, force him into a payment plan, attach his tax refunds, or put a lien on other property he owns by himself. My EX ran up her credit card debt buying furniture and things for her new apartment, and even paying off her car, then files bankruptcy failing to pay on the mortgage as per the decree. I was left holding the bag. My only solution.... bankruptcy.

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We (husband and wife) sold our house in january 2007. we used to file a joint return.through escrow, there was $2,087.94 in mortgage interest paid. we always filed jointly, but since we divorced mid-2007, we will fill single. can the mortgage interest be split 50/50?

Yes, it is the same as having a business partner. You may be divorced but after the divorce you were partners in the property. When you receive the 1099 from the bank just make a copy for you ex-spouse so they have documentation for their filing and you are good to go to deduct 50% each. Good Luck!

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It is now 8/2009. back on 12/2005 my wife signed my name on a $70,000 line of credit against our home and then took out 4 credit cards in my name and proceeded to max them out for $20,000. i didn't find out until 2007 when my credit card declined and i asked her why. we had a joint acct and she was suppose to be the one to pay the bills. we have been married for 10 yrs now and have two children ages 7 & 10. when she told (in an email) lol.. that she did this i flipped out! she had done this two separate times before over 5 yrs where she ran up credit cards for $17k and $20k but my dad helped us out. i know i sound like a stupid *** but i trusted her because she is an awesome mother and she loves her family and her family is really nice and grounded. i know after the second time i should have gotten my own bank acct and should have kept track of the money but i trusted her. three days after i found out she defrauded me, i got laid off and my father was in a hospice on his death bed waiting to die so we had to ask her parents for money to get us through. they did help us for 6-8 months and her aunt and uncle gave me a good full time job working for them. i was happy just to save the house and thought we could save our marriage. she filed for bankruptcy and i tried to pay the bills but 4 months later i too had to file bankruptcy for all her spending. to be honest, we don't have really nice "stuff" in our house. our first mortgage is $214,000 and the line of credit is down to $68,000 now but since the housing market went bust we prob will only get like $250,000 for our house. my atty( and i spoke to 2 other attys) says that even though she forged my name and blew all the money without me doing a thing she can get away with it!! we are in the discovery process of the divorce and once we see all of her financial records and where the money went to, we can hopefully figure out some things. if she paid household "bills" then my atty says there is nothing i can do. i live in connecticut. isn't that unreal to you reading this? i tried to do the right thing by staying together and keeping the kids in a house an not in a crappy appt but i guess i was wrong. i should have left once i found out about the forgery for $70k. again ... i lost my job and my dad was dying so i all i wanted to do was maintain. isn't this sad? hopefully i can find out that she spent the money on her student loans or just blew it to cash. she did have a po box for a while and maybe another acct in her name. if not i will just have to take her to court and let a judge scold her because that's prob all that will happen. some friends say to go after her as hard as i can and others worry about the kids. i have to wait 30 more days for the discovery and then will have a better idea of my situation. in her defense(i know i am a sucker) she is an excellent mother ( the worst in terms of financial) but she plays and supports them emotionally in ways i can't) and she did get a 2nd job delivering papers for a yr after the debacle. but i think that in time, if i do nothing and just walk away because of the children, i will regret it for the rest of my life. i never will say i was a great father or great husband, far from it, but she single handedly bankrupted myself, herself and the children and now acts like she did nothing wrong and all the money issues are a thing of the past.. your comments pls .. yes i want a divorce as well so i can stop living this lie and stop staying together just for the children. i could honestly just not forgive her after the last time and we have gone downhill since then. since she kept it all hidden from me, i had no idea that she just blew all the money until she told me ! we dont have nice stuff and we both work full time. i disagree with what ouragon posted saying i am lazy. naive and trusting yes. i actually told her after the first time i wanted to take over the bills but she declined. i should have been more forceful but thats my mistake.

Believe it or not, I think you're making too big of a deal out of her being a good mom and you're using it as an excuse. But bear with me a bit on this :) You don't say how old the kids are, but what does being a good mom mean? Interest in activities? Taking care of them when they're sick? This is just basic stuff, not something for which you hand out an award. Everything you said about yourself and your reactions is understandable. And this is especially true of the part where you say if you walk away from the kids, you'll regret it forever. Don't marginalize your own role as a father. Your wife may be a good mom in some senses of the word, but she's also set a horrid example to these kids about trust, lying, spending money, etc. And you? You were a bit wimpish about the bills. Who has the better character to set a good example for your kids? When your friends say to go after her for all she's got, and then some say go after the kids, you can do both, but with the priority on the latter. Stop minimizing your abilities to parent! Those kids need a stable life, and you can be the one to give them this. Don't make the same mistake you did before (being too passive) where your kids are concerned. Fight for them!

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My husband, even though living out of the home in 2008 paid the mortgage and all but one bill for the majority of the year, plus he was paying child support also, and paying out more than $1200 a month for their combined debt. then the kids were separated and we got his son, and the daughter went to live with her mother and the new husband. we have already filed our taxes and recieved our return and everything, and the ex wife is now finally trying to file her taxes and harassing us about filing an ammendment so that she can claim the daughter. she said that she is going to claim her anyways, and to look for something in the mail. can she even do that? my husband told her long before we filed that he was going to claim the daughter, and she agreed. but now she has changed her mind and is trying to get every little penny out of him that she can. if we ammend we will have to pay the irs 1500 back. i was wondering if anyone has any experience with this, what will happen if she files also, and since there is nothing in the divorce agreement dealing with taxes, who should have the legal right to claim the girl? my husband stopped paying for their bills at the end of july 2008, but continued paying the mortgage on the house through early this year. as far as i know, they have joint custody. she technically has had physically custody, but he was supporting her, as well. she didnt even work for part of the year. that is why she had originally agreed to letting him claim her, but now she has changed her mind. technically he was still living with them... he was there in the house with the kids every weekend while she left, or we had the kids staying with us. he lived elsewhere for work during the week. and he would take them for weeks at a time for holidays. as for the "taking turns" comment, this was our only turn. it was his last time claiming her, and then we are not going to claim her any longer. this was his last year living there and fully supporting them, which is why we claimed her to begin with.

Technically, the person who has primary custody of the child (the mother) is the one who claims the child...even if the other parent is paying all the bills and child support , etc. BUT, if she did agree to let him claim her, than all is good...so long as you have proof that she agreed to it. Otherwise, she has the right to sue you for that money. Since your husband's return has been completed, she won't be able to claim her daughter - IRS will reject it because the daughter's SS# was already used . It will be more work for the mother to go to court and sue him so I doubt that's what will happen. Next year, I would advice he let the mother claim the child.

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My son's name is on the mortgage along with his wife's' .they are divorcing. he owed our family money and to clear the debt he signed over his portion of his home to my husband and myself (we were the original grantees of the home solely to him).....before the divorce papers were ever filed. now the soon to be ex wife has voluntarily left the home and refuses to pay her portion of the mortgage. she will not agree to rent the home , or sell the home. my question would be who is still responsible for the mortgage debt? my son? both of them? can you deed over a home that has a mortgage? our half ownership has not been contested by anyone including a judge at this point. so in this economy the best scenario would be to lease the house. we have someone willing to do this and the payment would go directly to cover the mortgage , pay fire insurance and taxes. the wife is unwilling . basically she wants us to lose it to foreclosure. is there any hope in a situation like this. we don't want to have to hire a lawyer to represent us at this point but the wife won't budge and the payments aren't being met .their credit is shot. neither of them really cares . we hate to lose the house as it was my husband's home as a child. we deeded it as a gift to my son. we thought we were giving our son a nice start in life by having a paid for home. he gave the fiancee half before they married . a done deal. we can't contest the division of property. he did not think through property division and gifting before you marry. a hard lesson learned. thanks for any input or suggestions on where to go from here. (also the divorce has not been finalized because of the home)

It's a straw man transaction. If the property was used to secure a note BEFORE the deed to you, the mortgage is still in first lien position, and the lender has the right to foreclose on the borrower. You own 1/2 interest; but you got it subject to the outstanding liens and encumberances of record; including that mortgage. It is possible your son violated "Due on sale/transfer" clauses in the mortgage by doing a transfer; only a lawyer reviewing the mortgage could tell you that; in which case, the whole thing is due and payable in 30 days in most cases. Both signed the note; both are responsible. partition suit; judge will order one party or the other to buy out and refi- or sell and pay off. Suggestion? Have the divorce decree address the status of the house and order it sold to release debt. Should save you a partition suit;