What to do with home mortgage?

[Jade]

>My attorney has already explained that I have the right to
>force the sale of the house if stbx doesn't comply. I was
>hoping that there's something a little less drastic - since my
>daughter loves that house, I'd hate to see her affected.
>
>In particular, how easy is it to get my name off the mortgage?
>Is she going to have to go through the entire application
>process or is there some streamlined process?
>
>Thanks.

She will have to completely refinance the mortgage.  And the interest rates will be what they are now, not when you originally got the mortgage, which could increase the monthly payment.  She will also have to pay closing costs for the refinance.

Plus, she may not qualify until she has been working for at least a year.  

[mistoffolees]

That's what I was afraid of.

It looks like I'll need to structure the agreement so that I pay the mortgage in lieu of some of the alimony for a couple of years - both to give her time to get her credit history going and to reduce the principle to the point where she can afford it.

Thanks.

[CGS]

In MT at least.. a retirement account cannot be attached by any lien.

[MixedBag]

I rmember reading a WV case, where one person paid the mortgage and then got credit for either alimony or child support.

But it wasn't in the code, it was established in case law decisions at the state's supreme court level.

I haven't read other people's responses, but I can say that in mediation training, we were encouraged to get agreements where there are no ties left to each other except the children.

Therefore, any long term stuff would be frowned against.

I personally think that if you're gonna have to pay alimony, and she won't qualify to refinance the house and buy you out of your fair share of the equity, I'd be making payments directly to the mortgage company, call it alimony, and when alimony ends, force her to refinance and buy you out.

Also, as long as your name is on the lien, when you go to buy a house, it will go against your debt to income ratio -- which basically means you'll never qualify for a decent second house on your income alone.

Are you sure she can't refinance the house into a 30 year loan?  Since you mentioned that it's a 15 year loan now?  

[mistoffolees]

I don't have to worry about case law.

Our plan is that I will continue to pay the mortgage as part of the alimony payment - but this will be part of the court agreement. There's no way I'd do it without the court's approval (because she could claim I never paid her alimony). If she doesn't agree to it, we'll just have to force the sale of the house.

It looks like my best option is to get the agreement to pay the mortgage as part of the alimony. When the alimony runs out, she'll have to either refinance in her own name or sell. I'm pretty sure that at the end of the alimony period (probably 3-4 years), she should be able to refinance in her own name - especially if she goes with a 30 year.

I'm pretty sure I can get my new house even with the debt from the other one still in my name, so that's not really the issue either.

Thanks.

[jenjen]

I would have never moved. you say that your daughter loves that house, I assume she loves you as well and even more than that house.
i would imagine your daughter would be more concerned with losing you than the house, I havent read all the previous responses but, it seems like your priorities are a little warped. why not build an addition to the house for yourself and daughter (just a thought). you reall should address this matter with soc....couldnt hurt. I'm sure you wouldnt let your daughter go into a life threatening surgery without a second opinion
the decisions you make now will affect your child...for life so, get a second opinion.  GET SOC'S OPINION

[mistoffolees]

You're reading in things that aren't there.

I only moved after we reached an agreement that we would share custody 50:50. My daughter is alternating weeks and is well adjusted to the situation. While she loves the house, her (and my) priorities are straight. Custody issues are first, but with that out of the way, other minor considerations come to the surface.

The damage from having both parents living in the same house greatly exceeds any possible benefits.

[MixedBag]

in one of your other responses, you say you're living on 41% of your income.

and now you think you'll still qualify to buy another house.

Make sure.

I forget the exact percentage, but it's around 36%.....

If your debt to income ratio is greater than 36%, banks don't like that.

Careful....that's all I'm trying to say.

And about case law....sometimes you have to support what you've agreed to with case laws.   You two can't agree to something IF your state considers your agreement illegal -- EVEN if that's what the two of you want to do.

It might make sense to the two of you, but there might have been previous cases where the Supreme Court has said "You can't do that" which means "You can't even agree to that."

Just be careful....

[mistoffolees]

I'm not worried about the financing. I'm already pre-approved for a mortgage for as much as I need.

The 36% and 41% figures above are entirely unrelated. You're comparing apples and oranges.

As for case law, I'm not worried about it. My attorney suggested it and there's apparently no problem with it. I was just looking for alternatives that might have been better than my paying the mortgage as part of her alimony.

Thanks.