Legal Question in Family Law in Maryland

Since the house has negative equity, the divorce court probably won't force a sale if that is what the wife is seeking. After the divorce, they'll continue to be joint owners until such time as it becomes feasible to either sell the house or refinance it. That won't happen until the market turns around and the value of the house increases. It may be that she recognizes the current situation and is just trying to get personally off the mortgage so she frees up her credit. If the lender can be persuaded that he has sufficient income to carry the mortgage by himself and that she isn't going to be able to contribute anything, they might agree to release her. The best advice you can give your brother, if he hasn't already done so, is to retain an experienced family lawyer to represent him and try to get the issues resolved.