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3 possible ways to address one’s family home during a Texas divorce

Considering how long people often save to afford homeownership, the prospect of losing a home can be a frightening one. Especially if there are children in the family, it is only natural to worry about the ability to afford housing if someone cannot retain the marital home. Although there are often exaggerated and frightening stories about divorce outcomes, most family law matters see reasonable resolutions in the end.

The community property rules in Texas require a fair division of property rather than an even split. Spouses who own a house could potentially employ any of the three solutions below if they can agree on the issue. Otherwise, a judge will determine what is to be done.

Sole homeownership

The most common solution in a divorce involving real property is for one spouse to keep the home. Factors ranging from income and health to child custody arrangements can influence which spouse has stronger claim to the marital home. Typically, the spouse not staying in the home should receive a fair portion of its equity or other assets worth a comparable amount.

The sale of the home

There are several scenarios in which selling the marital home is the simplest and best solution. Maybe the spouses have very little equity accrued because they just bought the property. Maybe both of them have emotional attachments to the property that they worry could become negative after the divorce. Sometimes neither spouse can afford the home on their own. Spouses can make the decision to sell the home and split the funds from the sale in a specific manner.

Continued joint ownership

There are usually three main scenarios that sometimes lead to continued joint ownership of the marital home after a Texas divorce. The first is when they have children together. Some parents attempt a birdnesting custody arrangements as a way of keeping their children in the same school district. Other times, the house may be in need of repairs or the local market might be relatively weak. Spouses might agree to maintain the home jointly until they can sell it for a better return on their investment.

Finally, sometimes people agree to retain joint ownership of a property because it is in a high-demand area where they can rent it to tenants for a premium price. Each of those scenarios creates certain unique challenges and may require a very thorough contract between the spouses.

Ideally, spouses can work together to resolve their disagreements about marital property. If they cannot reach a mutual agreement, then a family law judge may need to interpret Texas law for them to settle their disagreement. Having a realistic idea of what outcomes are possible can help those preparing for complex property division matters in a Texas divorce to make informed decisions.