In Texas, a divorce can be a financially complex matter, especially when it comes to managing the marital home. This is generally the single most valuable asset a couple owns, and it is also illiquid, making assigning ownership and value difficult. However, there are many ways to work out settling the division of the house.
Houses and divorce
The value of the home plays an important role in the divorce proceedings as does the emotional attachment that each person has. For example, if the house is worth $1.5 million, then if one person wants to keep the house and live in it, they need to give up half of that value in other assets to balance out the other spouse’s share. That’s a heavy ask, and it might mean that they don’t have enough assets and cash flow to manage the upkeep and taxes on the house.
If the financial burden is too heavy, or if neither person wants to live in the house, then selling the house might be the simplest answer. Often, it takes both a lawyer and a financial advisor to work out all of the possible configurations of how the assets and the house itself can be divided. It isn’t easy to come to a resolution that will satisfy everyone, but the house often determines the whole financial outcome of all assets, so it’s the keystone of the settlement.
This is one of the toughest elements in a divorce to work out, but once it does, the rest tends to fall into place. It’s the central asset to the rest of the financial divisions and could determine the financial future of both spouses.