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Have you and your partner come to the difficult decision to get divorced? In addition to the emotional impact, a divorce unfortunately also entails many practical matters. If you both live in a purchased house, you will have to think about the future of the house. Will one of you stay there? Is that financially feasible? And how does the division of the surplus value work? In this article, we discuss the possibilities.
Who gets the purchased house after divorce?
After the divorce, the house is awarded to the owner. This could mean that one of you is the sole owner, but it is also possible that you both own the house. In principle, the person who bought the house is the owner. But in a marriage or registered partnership, the property of the house can become joint, even if it was originally bought by one person.
To know how this works for you, you should contact the notary. In the matrimonial or partnership conditions, you can read exactly who the owner or owners are. You can also find agreements there about who can stay in the house after a divorce. In the divorce agreement, you can deviate from this and appoint someone else to stay in the house.
Were you married before 2018 (or entered into a registered partnership)? Then all your possessions and debts from before and during the marriage became common. So it doesn't matter whether a house was bought before or during the marriage: it has definitely become joint property, unless you deviated from this with marital conditions.
Did you get married from 2018 (or entered into a registered partnership)? Then the 'limited community of goods' applies as standard. All your possessions and debts from before the marriage have remained private. Only the possessions and debts that were incurred during the marriage have become common, unless you have chosen to deviate from this in marital conditions.
Conclusion: A house that you bought during the marriage is usually jointly owned, unless the common conditions determine otherwise. A house bought before the marriage by one of the partners can be joint property, but also private property. The outcome depends on the date you got married and the conditions you may have drawn up.
What if one of them gets the house?
If one of you is the owner of the house, the other will have to leave. You can also make different arrangements about this in the divorce agreement. Would it be more convenient to leave the non-owner in the house for a while? Then clearly define this with agreements and conditions in the divorce agreement.
What if both people get the house?
If both of you are the owners of the house, you are both responsible for paying the mortgage. You must then determine together what will happen to the house. Does one of the two want to continue living in the house? Are you going to sell? Or do you choose to continue paying the mortgage together for a while? Also clearly define the agreements here in the divorce agreement.
Scenario 1: One of the partners wants to stay in the purchased house
In the case that one of the partners wants to stay in the purchased house, the mortgage will also have to be fully registered in that person's name. You can't just pass this on to the bank; the bank must give its permission for this. That makes sense because the responsibility for the mortgage debt ends up with one person.
Whether the bank agrees depends on the financial capacity of the partner who wants to stay in the house. The bank checks whether the remaining partner has sufficient income to bear the monthly mortgage payments. There are three scenarios possible here:
- If the bank gives permission, a new mortgage deed is drawn up. Notary and other administrative costs may be charged for this.
- If the bank does not give permission, it may be possible to take out a new mortgage with another bank. Or perhaps money can be borrowed in another way, for example from family or friends.
- If the partner cannot secure a mortgage anywhere, the house will have to be sold. It is also possible to choose together to continue paying the mortgage together for a while. For example, in the case the partner expects to be able to bear the mortgage alone soon.
Surplus value or residual debt?
If the partner has succeeded in putting the mortgage in his name, then the value of the house still needs to be 'settled' with the person leaving. You can have the value determined by a valuer, but you can also determine it in another way together.
There are two possible scenarios here:
- If there is surplus value (the house is then worth more than the remaining mortgage debt), the leaving partner receives half of this surplus value. The leaving partner is then 'bought out' by the remaining partner.
- If there is a residual debt (the house is then worth less than the remaining mortgage debt), the leaving partner pays half of the negative value to the remaining partner.
Different agreements can also be made in the divorce agreement here.
Scenario 2: The partners continue to pay the mortgage together for a while
In some cases, it may be wise to choose to continue to pay the mortgage together and remain co-owners. Below you will find a few situations where this could be a sensible choice.
- The housing market is uncertain, which leads you to believe the sales proceeds will be lower.
- You want the children to stay in their familiar environment, until another house in the neighborhood is found.
- One of the partners expects to have sufficient financial capacity to bear the mortgage alone soon.
Scenario 3: The partners decide together to sell the property
Have you decided that the property must be sold? You both benefit if the property is sold quickly. As long as the property has not been sold, you remain jointly responsible for the mortgage payments, insurance and other costs of the house. This can be financially burdensome, especially if one of the partners already lives elsewhere and has double housing costs.
In addition, a divorce is of course a very stressful period. The faster the sale of the property is handled, the sooner you can close this chapter. You can then both move on with your own lives. The sales proceeds can be used by both partners to find new accommodation.
In our article about the selling of a property upon divorce you can read about how to best approach this process. Also read our tips for a quick sale of a property.
Read more about selling your property
The importance of a good real estate agent when selling
A good real estate agent greatly helps you to quickly sell your property at a good price. In case of a divorce, there are even more reasons to engage a real estate agent. Emotions can run high, making it difficult to make objective decisions about the sale of the house. A real estate agent, as an impartial third party, gives good advice and takes many tasks off your hands.
Read what a real estate agent does for you
How to quickly find the best real estate agent?
Through Mijn Verkoopmakelaar, you can quickly find the best real estate agents at competitive rates. The nice thing is that you don't have to contact real estate agents yourself. After you have registered your house with us, you will receive proposals from real estate agents in the neighborhood. You decide who you want to contact. That saves a lot of time and effort.
In addition, many selling real estate agents also work as buying real estate agent. In addition to selling the joint house, they can also help you buy a new house based on your own budget. Want to know more about our service? Get in contact with us!
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