The marital home is often one of the biggest, if not the biggest, asset that has to be handled during a divorce. Some people go into the divorce with a plan to try to keep the house from their ex out of spite. There is a chance that this train of thought will harm you in the long run.
Even if the marital home is easy to care for now, you need to determine if this will remain true after the divorce. Take time now to evaluate whether fighting for the marital home is a good idea.
Can you afford to keep the home?
Remember that you are going to be able to count only on your own income. While it might have been easy to afford the home with both incomes, that may not be the case now. You need to sit down and come up with a budget based on your income. From there, you can determine if you are able to afford the mortgage. If you can’t afford it, you should leave it alone. If you can afford it, you need to look even deeper.
On top of the mortgage, you need to make sure that you can afford to keep up with the taxes and insurance payments. You also need to be able to afford maintenance and upkeep.
What will you lose to keep the home?
Keeping the home will likely mean that you lose out on other assets. It might even mean that you have to take on some of the marital debt. Think carefully about these points because you might find that they cancel out the benefit of retaining the home.
Because of how finicky the property division process is, it is imperative that you have the marital home and any other significant assets appraised. This will help during negotiations about how to divide everything.
Are there any other factors to consider?
Tax implications are one consideration. There is a chance that you might have to worry about this if the property has appreciated since you purchased it.
You also need to think about how the property might impact you in the future. For example, if you have a job that could require you to move, there is a chance that having to sell the home when you move will be more work than you are prepared to handle.
