Texas residents may be interested in learning more about assumable mortgages and how they may come into play during a divorce. The reason for interest in this topic is that there are very few things that are as difficult to agree on during a divorce as the family home. For most divorcing couples, their family home is the most valuable asset that they will divide. At the end of the day, compromises will need to be made. It is likely that one spouse will be granted control of the home in the settlement agreement.
Once this decision is made, a divorcing couple needs to decide what they are going to do with the mortgage on the home. In some cases, people may agree to keep the joint mortgage and have each party pay his or her part of it. For this to work, ex-spouses will need to trust each other. At any time, one party could decide that he or she is not going to pay the mortgage. This would negatively impact the credit of both parties.
Another option is for one person to assume the original mortgage, meaning that he or she will take on the full responsibility of the mortgage. One reason for doing this is wanting to keep good payment terms on an existing mortgage.
Not all joint mortgages are assumable. Before beginning the process of assuming the loan, it is good to look at the conditions of the loan to see if this is possible. Assuming a loan is not as easy as simply signing a few documents. Oftentimes the party who assumes the loan will have to present the same types of documentation he or she presented when the joint loan was created.
Family law attorneys may be able to help their clients better understand the laws pertaining to financial issues associated with divorce. These may include dividing joint assets, addressing joint debt, dividing property that is jointly owned as well as a number of other questions that may arise.
