Posted on: 21st Nov, 2006 08:38 am
I have been divorced for 4 years now. My ex was \'given\' our home in the divorce decree. I agreed to that. However, the mortgage company does NOT recognize any rulings in a court from a judge.
My ex does not make on-time payments, thus the original mortgage company would not re-finance him. I have let it go for 4 years because, altho my credit has been pinged by these late payments, all creditors have taken a copy of my divorce decree as proof that I don\'t own the home (so to speak) and am not responsible for the loan, according to the courts. Since the divorce, I have been granted a mortgage on a condo, a car loan, and a healthcare loan since the divorce -- I\'ve only had to show that the courts gave the home to him.
What I don\'t understand is that if that paperwork was enough for me to secure another home loan, why does the original mortgage company not recognize it? I do not make enough of a salary to have two mortgages, yet a mortgage company didn\'t even LOOK at the other loan my name is on when they granted me a loan for my condo -- only the divorce decree.
And now I am in a committed relationship w/ another man. It has become urgent that I get off this loan w/ my ex -- I don\'t want to bring this \'debt\' into another marriage. My ex is incapable of making any on-time payments for any period of time (the current mortgage co. wants 6 mos of ontime payments to re-finance -- and he will NEVER be able to do that).
Do I have any options here? I have not contacted the mortgage company yet (the mortgage was sold this past year and they have NOT contacted me for any delinquent payments-they may not even have my new address/phone #)
My ex does not make on-time payments, thus the original mortgage company would not re-finance him. I have let it go for 4 years because, altho my credit has been pinged by these late payments, all creditors have taken a copy of my divorce decree as proof that I don\'t own the home (so to speak) and am not responsible for the loan, according to the courts. Since the divorce, I have been granted a mortgage on a condo, a car loan, and a healthcare loan since the divorce -- I\'ve only had to show that the courts gave the home to him.
What I don\'t understand is that if that paperwork was enough for me to secure another home loan, why does the original mortgage company not recognize it? I do not make enough of a salary to have two mortgages, yet a mortgage company didn\'t even LOOK at the other loan my name is on when they granted me a loan for my condo -- only the divorce decree.
And now I am in a committed relationship w/ another man. It has become urgent that I get off this loan w/ my ex -- I don\'t want to bring this \'debt\' into another marriage. My ex is incapable of making any on-time payments for any period of time (the current mortgage co. wants 6 mos of ontime payments to re-finance -- and he will NEVER be able to do that).
Do I have any options here? I have not contacted the mortgage company yet (the mortgage was sold this past year and they have NOT contacted me for any delinquent payments-they may not even have my new address/phone #)
Hi,
The situation you have described is really quite different. As other mortgage companies are willing to provide you loan based on the divorce judgment you got, but this particular company is not doing so.
"Do I have any options here?"
Option for you is to discuss this issue with your ex and ask him to search for lenders who would agree to refinance the loan.
You could also do some searching about lenders as it has become more of an unnecessary burden for you.
The situation you have described is really quite different. As other mortgage companies are willing to provide you loan based on the divorce judgment you got, but this particular company is not doing so.
"Do I have any options here?"
Option for you is to discuss this issue with your ex and ask him to search for lenders who would agree to refinance the loan.
You could also do some searching about lenders as it has become more of an unnecessary burden for you.
another solution that i can think of can be used if there is good equity in the house.
it will also depend on your ex as to if whether he agrees to it or not. the house can be sold to completely pay off the mortgage and purchase a new smaller home from the remaining proceeds.
let me add that there would be very less chance that ex will agree to any such thing. i am suggesting this option as there are only few ways by which you can have your name removed from the mortgage.
those are refinancing, novation, selling the house to pay off the loan and all of them are not working in your situation. foreclosure might take place if the monthly payments go into default for a certain number of months. but your ex is making the payments.
also if the original mortgage company is not willing to refinance then look out for other lenders who would, may be for a somewhat higher rate.
it will also depend on your ex as to if whether he agrees to it or not. the house can be sold to completely pay off the mortgage and purchase a new smaller home from the remaining proceeds.
let me add that there would be very less chance that ex will agree to any such thing. i am suggesting this option as there are only few ways by which you can have your name removed from the mortgage.
those are refinancing, novation, selling the house to pay off the loan and all of them are not working in your situation. foreclosure might take place if the monthly payments go into default for a certain number of months. but your ex is making the payments.
also if the original mortgage company is not willing to refinance then look out for other lenders who would, may be for a somewhat higher rate.
Thanks for the responses. Ex cannot sell house and get a new one -- he can't afford this one -- and no one will give him a new loan. He did say he'd check other lending companies, but who will take someone that has lousy payment history??? I mean is that even a possibility? And of course a higher rate means a higher monthly payment, which he can't do right now. Won't lenders know that? He's a hugh RISK ... (anyone wonder why I left?) LOL Thanks again!
Read all the posts and I also agree that until it is refinanced in your ex's name, I do not think there can be any other way out to remove your name from the mortgage.
If there are ways then I would also like to know about them as it will be new for me.
If there are ways then I would also like to know about them as it will be new for me.
Hi Suzboone,
If the court says that you are not responsible for the loan, they may have given you some written document regarding this. You can show this document to the company servicing your loan currently. You can get the contact address from the mortgage company that offered you the loan.
In case you don't have any such document, well then you need to take your name off the loan. So, either the loan has to be refinanced in your ex's name or you need to transfer the loan in his name. But you say that it's not possible for him to refinance. Neither will the lender allow you to transfer the loan in ex's name through novation, as that will require your ex to have a good payment history.
I shall suggest that you pay off the loan somehow and take your name off it. Otherwise, the company servicing the loan currently may some day ask you for the payments and then it will be quite difficult for you to repay a lump sum at a single installment.
Hope this information will help you. If you have any other query, please feel free to come up with it. We shall try our best to resolve any related issue that bothers you.
Thanks,
Caron.
If the court says that you are not responsible for the loan, they may have given you some written document regarding this. You can show this document to the company servicing your loan currently. You can get the contact address from the mortgage company that offered you the loan.
In case you don't have any such document, well then you need to take your name off the loan. So, either the loan has to be refinanced in your ex's name or you need to transfer the loan in his name. But you say that it's not possible for him to refinance. Neither will the lender allow you to transfer the loan in ex's name through novation, as that will require your ex to have a good payment history.
I shall suggest that you pay off the loan somehow and take your name off it. Otherwise, the company servicing the loan currently may some day ask you for the payments and then it will be quite difficult for you to repay a lump sum at a single installment.
Hope this information will help you. If you have any other query, please feel free to come up with it. We shall try our best to resolve any related issue that bothers you.
Thanks,
Caron.
i am in the same situation with my ex. i have even taken him back to court for contempt. the judge stated that the language was ambiguous and a matter of interpretation. he was to maintain payments and hold me harmless from the debt. the home is now in foreclosure for the third time. i have no debt and just received a promotion and a raise at work. no one and i mean no one will finance me for a home. i have provide the divorce decree and proven that i have no debt. still no financing. i had someone suggest filing bankruptcy to depose of the mortgage debt. i work for a bank in the bankruptcy department, i don't think that would be wish on my part. i sent a copy of the decree to the mortgage company they told me the decree was not worth the paper it was written on. my ex has horrible credit no chance of refinancing and he knew this. he has stated many times that he will live in the home for free as long as the mortgage company will let him. so what do i do?
to suzboone: stick to your guns. you've got a court-ordered stipulation that you're not responsible for the mortgage in question. as you know, most lenders will accept that as sufficient when you have been seeking financing. there is no way i would suggest you repay that loan. how to get your former husband to refinance? tough to say, but i would keep at it. he ought to have refinanced the property when the divorce took place.
to sandy: why did the judge make the statement that your decree is filled with ambiguity and subject to interpretation? this doesn't help your cause in trying to get relief. i suggest you would be wise to seek your lawyer's counsel to try to get to the bottom of that part of the problem first.
if, indeed, it's a problematic document, you may be stuck with this problem for a while. i hope for your sake that's not the case.
to sandy: why did the judge make the statement that your decree is filled with ambiguity and subject to interpretation? this doesn't help your cause in trying to get relief. i suggest you would be wise to seek your lawyer's counsel to try to get to the bottom of that part of the problem first.
if, indeed, it's a problematic document, you may be stuck with this problem for a while. i hope for your sake that's not the case.
I am in the same boat. My ex got the trailor and the divorce papers show he was responsible to pay it off. Well, he didn't and it got repossesed. Now 8 years later, the morgage company is contacting me wanting me to pay a bill of 21,000 dollars. They also gave me an option to sign a single party release but I would still have to pay a portion of the payment. Is this true that I am responsible? They guy I spoke with also told me that the divorce papers weren't worth having in this situation. What is the use in dealing with the mess to start with if someone can get by with not paying for what they are responsible for. Makes no since to me. If anyone can help, please do.
You should not be liable if the divorce papers say that he is resonsible. That is a decision made by a judge. You should get an attorney to help you with this situation.
After my divorce my ex hubby let the home go back to the bank. I was to be left harmless of this debt also and when I went to the bank they told me my credit is good but because that was on my credit I couldnt get a loan for a home. I have the papers that state im to be left harmless and it doesnt seem to make a diff. How can my credit be good and because of something he done stop me from getting a loan?? What can I do to get this cleared up? the home was paid off at the day of the sale at the court house.
Hi Carol,
Since your name was on the loan, your credit was affected when your ex signed over the property to the bank. I'm not sure if anything could be done at this point in time, given your credit has already been hit. However, if the divorce papers state that he was supposed to refinance the loan within a certain period of time to release you from the debt and he failed to do so, you can take legal action against him for contempt of court.
Since your name was on the loan, your credit was affected when your ex signed over the property to the bank. I'm not sure if anything could be done at this point in time, given your credit has already been hit. However, if the divorce papers state that he was supposed to refinance the loan within a certain period of time to release you from the debt and he failed to do so, you can take legal action against him for contempt of court.