July 2015 I was granted a divorce from bed and board in NC based on abandonment, in which husband was evicted from the home. The divorce from bed and board decree states the marital home is sequestered to the wife (that’s me). It further indicates the marital home is for the use of wife and children as a form of child support. I now want to sell the home and husband is refusing to sign home over to me. The mortgage is in my name only, but both our names are on the deed. Based on the language in the divorce from bed and board decree, do I have the authority to sell the home without his consent? Or, do I have to file for equitable distribution to request ownership of the home to be able to sell? Will the divorce from bed and board order suffice at closing for sale of home without his signature?
You will have to file an equitable distribution action against your husband in order to own the home outright and sell it as you please. This is assuming you have not been granted an absolute divorce yet.
The divorce from bed and board judgment is not a final order dividing and distributing the marital property. It does not change the title owners on the deed, so you do not have the authority to sell the home without your husband’s input. The divorce from bed and board judgment will not suffice at a closing to sell the home by yourself.
Anna Ayscue
Attorney with Rosen Law Firm Cary • Chapel Hill • Durham • Raleigh • Wake Forest
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