How to Manage Home Ownership During and After a Separation.
“Till death do we part…” unfortunately doesn’t always work out that way. And while splitting up is incredibly hard, finding a mortgage following your separation doesn’t need to be.
Are you recently separated, divorced, or in the middle of a split and wondering how that affects your ability to get a mortgage?
Finances can be a sticky topic between spouses, even at the best of times, and during a relationship break down, those conversations can be even more challenging. At Boychuk Mortgage Group, we can’t give you marital advice, but we can certainly help get your home financing back on track.
Let’s look below at some of the frequently asked questions on:
Home Financing After a Separation
- Can I Refinance and Stay in My Home or Do I Have to Sell?
- Do I Need a Separation Agreement?
- Do I Need to Complete the Separation Agreement Right Away?
- Does My Separation Agreement Have to Be Legalized?
- Can I Apply on My Own Now?
- What Documents Will I Need to Confirm My Assets or Down Payment?
- Does My Divorce Need to Be Finalized Before I Get a New Mortgage?
In many cases, the marital home is owned by both parties and is often the most profitable asset that needs to be divided following a separation. Now you may be wondering if it is best to sell your home, or if there is a way you can stay in your home. Let’s look at those two options below.
- Sell Your Home
- When selling your home, both parties agree to liquidate your asset and pay out your remaining mortgage balance in full, including a mortgage penalty, and realtor fees. All the left-over funds, also known as your net equity, can be split up as agreed.
- This step does not require a mortgage advisor, though if you are looking to take that next step with purchasing your next home, reach out to our team and we’d be happy to help you plan for that next big move.
- Refinance And Stay in Your Home
- If you decide to buy out your partner and take sole ownership of your home, our team at Boychuk Mortgage Group can help. With a separation mortgage, we will help you buy out your partner, retain the value you’ve built up in your home, and keep that desired stability for you and your family.
- How Do I Refinance to Stay?
- When refinancing your home, the party leaving will request a “release of covenant” from the lender and you will “assume the mortgage’ through the process of requalifying. If there is an outstanding net equity balance in the home, you will be able to refinance the mortgage in your own name up to 95% of the homes current value to pay out the other party. This process will result in you registering your new mortgage solely in your name and hopefully includes enough cash to pay out any affairs.
- It’s important to note that with less than 20% equity left in your home, you will not be able to pull out any additional cash for personal use/debts.
Yes!
- In almost all cases, a separation agreement is required as a fundamental component to securing you your new mortgage.
- A separation agreement is the initial process whereby both parties come to an agreement on any spousal support, child support, custody arrangements, and the division of relationship assets/ debts.
- Lenders will require a separation agreement to establish a better understanding of the affordability within your new mortgage, based on any support owed or received and the disbursement of any joint assets.
- In cases where no support is payable and there are no shared assets, we can request a statutory declaration, also known as a “stat dec”, with your lender, which will be signed at completion with your lawyer.
No!
- With an accepted separation agreement, we can get the process started for you. However, it will be a condition to your financing that the separation agreement is completed prior to funding.
- On a case-by-case basis, if your agreement is not finalized, but your legal team can confidently confirm in your agreement a “minimum” value of funds that will eventually be disbursed to each party, we can sometimes get that exception.
No!
- While a separation agreement is required, it is not mandatory that your agreement be legalized by your lawyer. In provinces like BC, this agreement needs to be signed by both parties and witnessed.
- Absolutely, just get in touch with one of our advisors and we will walk you through each step of the process. We will identify how much you are able to qualify for and factor in any additional income like child support, spousal support or child tax benefits.
- We will help you put a plan in place, helping you meet your needs for today and goals of tomorrow.
- Your separation agreement will specifically outline the division of all joint assets going to either party.
- If you are using these assets towards the down payment of your new home, you will need a minimum of 3 months of bank statements, or confirmation from your lawyer’s order to pay statement.
No!
- In Canada, a separation period of 12 months is required prior to being able to finalize a divorce. For this reason, we can get you into your new mortgage at any time during the separation period.