Legal Question in Family Law in Minnesota

Thank you for your question. Unfortunately, many more facts are required to give you a meaningful answer, and the first place to start may be with the home's value and the amount of your net equity. Is the home encumbered to value? That is, do you owe more on it than it may be worth? It will not make any difference who invested money in the property if it is essentially worthless, since the law does not require you to reimburse your wife for investments she made in the home if the home does not currently have any value. You may discover, like many home owners these days, that all the time and money you patiently invested in your home is lost -- at least at this time.

Assuming your home has a positive value, the next question is whether your wife invested money she earned or saved during your marriage, or whether the money she invested was received by her as a gift, inheritance, or was otherwise brought into the marriage. If the money she invested was received as an inheritance, for example, she would likely have a non-marital interest in the home. The amount of her non-marital interest would generally be equal to the amount of her non-marital investment, although there is some variability in the law on this point. If the money she invested was from her earnings, then the investment was of marital property, and is as much yours as it is hers.

Whether you would owe her money for anything depends on how other assets are divided between you, and would require many more facts to properly analyze. Feel free to contact me if you have further questions about this matter.

Again, thank you for your question.