And eventually she would prevail for conveyance, if she is diligent enough. In this case it sounds like the x-wife is about to throw in the towel and abandon the property, if I read the post correctly. Often times emotions being what they are, hard headed x-spouses can defy the decree and somehow prevail by refusing to comply. The other spouse, (usually the x-wife, for some reason), ends up doing whatever they have to do to be done with the lunacy, and sometimes that means abandoning their legal rights, just to concede the situation and be done with the X. Is there such a thing as “conceding victory…?” That is almost what it seems like in these cases…
The divorce decrees and property settlements leave a lot to be desired for those mired in this madness… They are usually lose-lose battles, at best, and maybe that is why I seem not to deal with many of them. I just can’t stand to see folks slug it out to the death of both.
So we are in agreement for the most part here… the decree alone doesn’t fix things, and in due time the recipient of title by decree, will prevail if they have enough fortitude (and money to feed the kids in the mean time). Or if there is enough equity, a white knight investor could run interference and fund whatever legal costs to force compliance, as long as they are post decree. I have learned not to get involved in these situations while a marriage is still in the termination stages. In OH no such thing of partitioning property held in survivorship… one small death while enroute to the final decree can ruin the best laid plans… as the property will revert in whole to the survivor, regardless of what has been agreed to by any party. So I pass on those.
Any ideas how to get the sellers ex husband from holding up the sale of a house to me.
I have a woman who wants to get out from under a 1700.00 payment (ARM) and wants to sell the home to me for what she owes. She would leave close to 75k on the table in equity. She wants a fast sale with no profits. The ex is on the loan and title. The ex feels he is now entitled to any proceeds and that she needs to sell it higher so he can get half. He is also doing this to cause problems. The divorce papers show he received other property and she had ownership of the house. Basicly he says that he is not going to sign my offer and that she can take him to court. She is ready to walk away from the house at the end of Aug. She is current with the payments but would stop making payments. Large house in a great neighborhood. She is thinking about taking him to court but feels it would cost her aprox 2k to get started with a lawyer. It would be nice to get this done before the end of summer. Any ideas would be greatly appreciated. Thanks –
You have one motivated seller… You could buy a half interest in the property and then become a pain and even force the guy the sell…
But, the truth is… get a copy of the divorce decree… and if it states the property is hers… then do the deal… you cna force his hand later and the title company will recognize that decree… at least they have for me when needed… (even without a deed filed)
But, the truth is if not… move on… don’t try and make a deal happen that’s this hard…
Just like in basketball… when they say stop throwing up bricks… it means you’re usually forcing the shot trying to make things happen…
Move on find the next deal… and the next motivated seller… and I’m going to help you here… find motivated sellers (plural) and then life will be easier…
You won’t focus so much on getting “a” deal done, but rather on which deals are the best fit with the least resistance and most profit…
Posted by Kristine-CA on August 04, 2007 at 21:17:31:
What kind of “divorce papers” are you looking at? If the wife received
the house in the order/decree then something hasn’t been done to
record the order and/or deed to give the wife title. So first thing is to
figure out if she has title per the court order, or not. That being said,
I’ve seen plenty of props where the ex deeds away their half but the
loan remains in place. Is that the case here?
If the husband really is a co-owner and If it were me: Make her
headache go away and take over the house and the payments and get
the deed. I’d make a deal with wife to take property subject-2 and
purchase just her half. I’d contact the husband during “escrow” and let
him know I’ll be his new partner in the house. I say "escrow’ because
I’d probably not do an escrow on this one because my escrow company
would require that the lender be notified of the deed. Not so good.
Anyway, I think you may be able to work something out with this guy
when he sees that his signature wasn’t needed for you to own half.
I’m wondering though if all he’s doing is blowing smoke because you
say she received the house; It also seems that neither you or the wife
are clear about the title.
I’m sorry, did you say that the divorce decree gave the house to the ex-wife? That should be enough to remove him from the Title all by itself. The sale, as long as it covers the mortgage, should be enough to satisfy the rest of his interest. With the decree you should not need his signature on a sales contract.
Have an attorney go over the decree to ensure that the property was in fact the ex-wife’s exclusively.
While I have seen many divorce decrees involving property settlements, I can truthfully say I am no expert on these transactions. However, (in states of my familiarity) every decree that I remember seeing does not automatically transfer property rights to the party who is awarded the property. It usually directs one spouse to convey X property to the X… (no pun intended). A deed is still required in order to clean up the business at hand. Failure by the party to convey the property by deed may put them in contempt of court, but it doesn’t automatically resolve the absolute ownership interest, in and of itself. At least that is what I have seen…
Like anything, there are always the 2% of jilted and angry spouses who are adament about maintaining some control or irritant factor, and refuse to convey the interest, therein gumming up the works. If only it were as simply as the decree being as valid as an executed Deed.
Exellent info. You are right, the seller isn’t very clear and I’m not familiar with divorce documents and procedures. I need to find out exactly if she was given the house or not. Thanks
Posted by Kristine-CA on August 05, 2007 at 14:19:57:
True–the divorce decree doesn’t convey title. But an order giving the
house to the wife is better than nothing. And while the wife may have
to “take him to court” at least the case would be relatively clear cut in
her favor. Let’s hope that’s the case for the original poster, since that
would mean he could tie it up and take it subject-2 AND do whatever it
takes to get the husand off title. If for some reason the husband’s
interest is valid, well, then, that takes some creative solutions.