QUESTION
What are my rights to the appreciation of a marital home when I'm not on dead but on mortgage and have contributed to the home.
Asked on Sep 05th, 2015 on Family Law - Florida
More details to this question:
I am about to file for a divorce on my own without a lawyer. I have read that I may have rights to an equitable division of the appreciation of our home. My husband bought the home before we were married but refinanced the home and my name is on mortgage. I know I can't have house and I don't want it but I was paying my husband money towards the home ever since we moved in together. Do I stand a chance of receiving some of the equity from the house ?
2 ANSWERS
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If the home appreciated in value during the marriage, then you would generally be entitled to a portion of the appreciation. Also, regardless of whether or not the home appreciated in value during the marriage, you might be entitled to a portion of the mortgage reduction that resulted from the payment of the monthly mortgage with marital funds. Note that the amount of the mortgage payment is not the same as the amount of the mortgage reduction, because part of the monthly mortgage payment went to interest on the loan. Also note that the law in various regions of Florida is currently not consistent regarding entitlement to a portion of the mortgage reduction where the house has not also appreciated in value. This is a tricky area of the law, but in all likelihood, you are entitled to something as it pertains to his pre-marital house.
Answered on Sep 08th, 2015 at 10:45 AM
Yes you do. Two vital components in making the determination of what you would be entitled to are: how much the mortgage was paid down (the principal) during the marriage. (complicated because of the refinancing) and how much the home appreciated during the marriage. The second factor requires knowing the value of the home at the time of marriage and now (two separate appraisals) and the first requires, at a minimum, amortization schedules.
The formula to establish this was annunciated in the case of Kaa v. Kaa. It is a little complicated to take this on yourself. Presenting this evidence to a court is difficult. If your spouse and you can come to an agreement without representation that you think is fair, that may be okay, but you could be short changing yourself- or not. You may, at the very least, wish to consult with a family law attorney before embarking on this task armed only with information given without a full assessment of the situation.
Best of luck,
Cindy Vova
Law Office of Cindy S. Vova, P.A.
8551 West Sunrise Blvd., Suite 301
Plantation, FL 33322
954-316-3496
info@vovalaw.com
Answered on Sep 06th, 2015 at 12:17 PM