Legal Question in Real Estate Law in Illinois

Re: quit claims

Your question is really two-fold. First, do you need to change the ownership in order to re-finance? I would say your lender would be better served by having you both sign the mortgage documentation so as to potentially have two persons liable for repayment rather than just one person (your wife) on the mortgage. But that is really a question for you and your wife to decide and, if necessary, your lender. Depending on whether you decide to change how the property is owned (in title), will determine how your lender wants the mortgage to be signed. Right now, your wife would be securing all of the risk under the mortgage.

Second, it may be worthwhile getting the advice of an attorney as to how you and your wife should own title to the property. Tenancy by the Entirety is available to married persons and combines the survivorship attributes of joint tenancy (where title transfers to the surviving party upon the death of one of the joint owners), coupled with the benefit of limited protection against creditors. That is to say that a judgement against just one of the joint homeowners will not enable the creditor to enforce its lien against any other resident homeowner.