Why not to keep the house after divorce

Many people who get divorced try to figure out how they can keep the house. This is especially common for parents who have young children, as they don’t want to change life too much for those children. Keeping them in the same home is an easy way to give them stability.

While this might be the right thing for you to do, it’s also important to look at it from the other side. What are some reasons that you should not keep the house after your divorce?

All of the costs may be unaffordable

Even if your spouse takes other assets in the divorce and you get the house, that doesn’t mean it’s a free asset. There are a lot of costs that go along with it, such as yearly home insurance, upkeep and maintenance, property taxes and the like. In a lot of cases, a newly single parent will find that it’s just not realistic to cover all these costs on one income.

You will have to get a new mortgage

Another issue is that, if you and your spouse had a mortgage before, you probably have to get a new mortgage on your own. It is rare for a spouse to be so generous that they would allow you to stay on the current mortgage, as they would then be liable for your financial decisions in the future regarding that mortgage. That said, getting a new mortgage on one income may be more difficult, or it may even be impossible to get a big enough mortgage to afford the home you currently live in. You really have to think about the financial side of this.

Sorting through your options

This doesn’t mean that you should never keep the house, but you can see how important it is to look at it from every direction. Make sure you also take the time to consider your legal options.