One of the most stressful questions during any divorce is how the shared property gets divided. Who gets to keep the car? Who gets to keep the house? Who gets to keep the bank account? When it comes to houses, which is obviously important to divorcing spouses, there's another interesting question: is there a way to keep your house if it is in your (ex-)spouse's name?
In Florida, property division doesn't factor in whose name it is under - only when it was acquired. If something was acquired during the marriage, half of it legally belongs to each spouse - regardless of whose name was put on it. This statute lasts from the day you get married until the day you file for divorce.
We discuss the property division law more in this Blog. Here's a particularly relevant snippet of that Blog:
“Practically, this means that each spouse now owns fifty percent of all property acquired during the marriage. If you bought cars during the marriage, you now own half of each of them. If you bought a house during the marriage, you now own half of it. It does not matter whose name is on the deed. If you own a business that you started during the marriage, your spouse now owns half of it.
Things can get complicated, too. If you bought a house prior to the marriage but made renovations on it during the marriage, those renovated parts of the house are considered marital property while the original parts are nonmarital. It gets that compartmental in division.”
Here are a few different scenarios we can apply this principle to:
My House is in My Name, It Was Acquired During the Marriage
You legally own half of it following the divorce.
My House is in My Ex's Name, It Was Acquired During the Marriage
You legally own half of it following the divorce.
My House is in Both of Our Names, It Was Acquired During the Marriage
You legally own half of it following the divorce.
My House is in My Name, It Was Acquired Before the Marriage
You most likely own the entire house following the divorce, unless there were renovations done to it during the marriage.
My House is in My Ex's Name, It Was Acquired Before the Marriage
You most likely do not own the house at all following the divorce, especially if you made a Premarital Agreement, unless there were renovations or expansions done to the house during the marriage.
My House is in Both of Our Names, It Was Acquired Before the Marriage
You most likely own half of the house following the divorce.
Get the Freedom and Peace of Mind You Deserve
At the Florida Divorce Law Group, we are dedicated to protecting your rights. If you acquired your house during your marriage, you legally own half of it - regardless of whose name is on the deed. To speak to someone about your situation, contact Florida Divorce Law Group today! Help is just a call away.
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