May 11, 2015

One of the many difficult tasks that you must figure out while going through a divorce is how to divide up your belongings when everything is said and done. This is especially hard when you both feel entitled to, or have a desire to, keeping the same things. Minor purchases, like furniture or even family vehicles, can usually be divided up fairly easily. But, the family home is a different story for many people. If both you and your spouse have a desire to keep the family home, and cannot come to an agreed decision together, then the courts must get involved to help you decide who remains in the home, or if it must be sold.

In the meantime, here are a few questions to ask yourself to determine if staying in your home really is in your best interest or not.

Can Your Afford to Keep Your Home?

When you’re married, paying for your family’s home is much easier. More than likely, there are two incomes contributing to the monthly mortgage payment, utilities, property taxes, HOA costs, and all of the other expenses that may come with owning a home. As much as you love the home you’ve spent a major portion of your life living in, can you realistically afford to remain living there after a divorce? If you retain your home in a divorce settlement, and then find yourself struggling to make the necessary payments on it later on, you may end up facing bankruptcy or foreclosure, only adding more pain and frustration to a delicate period of your life.

Can You Maintain It?

As a married couple, you probably shared many of the responsibilities that come with maintaining a home. Consider the size of the home, yard and property. Can you keep up with the maintenance, yard work, and housekeeping of the property on your own? Can you afford to hire out the work if necessary? You might think that keeping your family home after a divorce would help provide a sense of stability and consistency, but in the end, it might only cause more headaches instead.

Are You Emotionally Prepared to Stay in Your Home?

Depending on the reasons and status of your relationship prior to your divorce, remaining in your home could be straining on your emotional health. Staying in the family home could serve as a constant reminder of endless fighting, financial problems, and difficult life choices or circumstances. For some people, getting a clean start in a new home is the catalyst for moving on after a divorce.

Can You Compensate Your Spouse For Their Portion of the Home?

Ohio is known as an equal distribution state. This means that any property that was acquired between you and your spouse during your marriage must be divided equally, if a fair agreement cannot be made outside of the courts. Can you afford to pay your spouse for their share of the home?

In the end, if you opt for leaving your family home after the divorce, the move away may be extremely difficult. Change can be very hard, and divorce is certainly a time filled with significant change. But, when you step back and try to see a larger picture, you may allow yourself to experience a new opportunity for growth and new life.

If you’d like to learn more about divorce and equal distribution in Ohio, don’t hesitate to contact my law offices at 419-243-3922. I am committed to advocating for my clients, and helping them advocate for themselves during a divorce. A free consultation with me could offer the help you need to begin again after a divorce.

Call Toledo divorce lawyer Michael E. Bryant today for all of your legal needs. Find Michael E. Bryant online at www.mebryantlaw.com, visit our law office in Toledo, OH on the second floor of 1119 Adams St. or call us at (419) 243-3922.