If you and your spouse are going through a divorce, you may start identifying marital assets that you would like to keep. Some financial assets typically are just split between the couple, but tangible assets may be traded back and forth.
To that end, you may decide that you would like to keep the family home. You are even willing to give up other marital assets with a similar value to ensure that you become the sole owner of the house. You and your spouse originally bought the home together, so it is a valuable asset that you both own, but you do not want to have to move after the marriage ends.
While this type of arrangement certainly may be possible during property division, remember that you may also be obligated to refinance your mortgage.
The necessity of refinancing
The reason why you have to refinance is because your former spouse will not want to be liable for future payments. The mortgage lender is not considering your marital status, and they do not care if you got divorced. If you and your ex are both on the mortgage, you are both responsible.
In other words, even if your ex agrees to let you keep the home in exchange for other assets, if you started missing mortgage payments years in the future, the mortgage lender would reach out to them to seek appropriate payment. It is likely that your ex will want you to refinance to take their name off the loan so that they do not have any liability moving forward.
Refinancing on one income can sometimes be difficult, so it is important to consider if keeping the home is a viable option as you move through your divorce. While you address this and any other property division issues, take the time to carefully look into all of your legal options.