My wife and I, after months of discussing have decided to separate. We married very young and have both come to the conclusion we would be happier apart. We still love each other very much and will always be friends. We are going to make this separation/divorce as easy as possible for us. We are writing up a separation agreement for the little debt we have and for the house that we own. She is staying in the house and I am moving to Florida. The separation agreement indicates that she will pay the mortgage and I can’t be held responsible for fault. I understand I will have to sign a quitclaim deed as well. My question, is that enough for me to be held unaccountable for the house? What if I want to buy a house of my own in Florida, will the fact that my name on this house prevent me from getting a house in Fl? Is there any way for me to get my name of the mortgage w/o her having to sell or refinance the house? Thank you in advance Erin, this is a great service your firm provides.
You can certainly attempt to explain to a lender that you no longer have responsibility for the mortgage in North Carolina. However, the best way to proceed is to call your current lender and see if they will do a ‘loan assumption’. Insure that this ‘loan assumption’ will suffice for any new lender that you contact.
If that is not an option, the best thing to do is to have your wife refinance the mortgage against the marital residence. While an agreement that she be responsible for the mortgage may suffice, there is no guarantee with how an underwriter will view your credit rating with an outstanding mortgage in your name.