The Divorce Process and Mortgage Financing

At what point in the divorce process should you start working with a mortgage professional?

The marital home is typically one of the largest, if not the largest, marital asset. In a divorce situation, it may also be one of the largest items of contention as well as emotional attachment. Do you sell the home, split the proceeds and move on to purchase a new home? Do you keep the home, buy the equity out of the other spouse and stay? Whatever the decision is, setting yourself up for future mortgage financing is important and should involve a mortgage professional who is trained to work with and identify financing hurdles in divorce.

Participating in mediation for financial matters in divorce can be a constructive, non-contentious means of coming to an agreement on financial issues including the mortgage. Like other mediations, a Certified Divorce Lending Professional (CDLP) can serve as a neutral facilitator rather than as an advocate and advisor representing one party in the divorce. 

A Certified Divorce Lending Professional brings financial knowledge, insight and understanding to the table to help guide clients through current challenges with mortgage financing either in order to retain the marital home by refinancing the current mortgage into one spouse’s name or setting both spouses up for the ability to obtain mortgage financing in the future when purchasing new and separate homes. A Certified Divorce Lending Professional (CDLP) brings specialized knowledge that guides clients through current challenges and is very beneficial to the final outcome of the divorce settlement. 

The biggest mistake is overlooking when in the divorce process should you bring the Certified Divorce Lending Professional into the picture? The answer: As early as possible. The ability to obtain mortgage financing can be significantly impacted by the details in the divorce settlement agreement. Whether you are selling the marital home and paying off the current mortgage or you are refinancing the current mortgage and retaining the marital home, the trained mortgage professional can provide financial knowledge, insight to the table to guide divorcing clients through current challenges and help foresee potential financing issues in the future. 

Always work with a Certified Divorce Lending Professional (CDLP) when going through a divorce and real estate or mortgage financing is present.

This is for informational purposes only and not for the purpose of providing legal or tax advice. You should contact an attorney or tax professional to obtain legal and tax advice. Interest rates and fees are estimates provided for informational purposes only, and are subject to market changes. This is not a commitment to lend. Rates change daily – call for current quotations.

Copyright 2019 Divorce Lending Association. No portion of this post may be reproduced without the written consent of the Divorce Lending Association

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