Legal Question in Family Law in Florida

Re: Co-owning home after divorce

You should each have your own lawyer to help you negotiate and prepare the Settlement Agreement.

Re: Co-owning home after divorce

Continuing to own the house together after the divorce is not a good idea. But, if you want to go that way, you can. The home, which was owned "by the entirities" during the marriage, will automatically become jointly owned after the final decree if you both remain owners. However, it is very smart to mention in your settlement agreement that that is what you want. Similarly, as joint tenants, you will both be responsible for expenses connected to the house. You can stipulate in your agreement how you want expenses divided. That will be a contract between the two of you. But, the authorities and other creditors expect their bills to be paid and as far as they are concerned, you will both be jointly responsible. That means that if one cannot pay his half, the other will have to pay it all or you both will be in trouble.

As far as selling the house, you can include any type of agreement in your document. You can decide that when the house is sold, one spouse gets more of the proceeds than the other if you wish.

I would spell out as much as possible in the settlement agreement. Who knows how well you will get alone in the future. You may not agree on anything then.